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Cole glanced around, not spotting his brother anywhere. Had Nathan wandered off? It wouldn’t be the first time. The boy was mischievous with a capital M, a quality he definitely inherited from his father’s side of the family. Both Josh and Cole had been notorious troublemakers in their day.
What if he had a son? Would the boy be a Dempsey through and through or more like Vi? Come to think of it, she’d probably been a bit of a troublemaker, too.
Perhaps the better question was what kind of father would Cole be? His few times babysitting hardly qualified him.
He could no doubt learn a lot from his older brother. Josh hadn’t started out as the best of dads. Like Cole, he’d been a professional cowboy and away more than he was home. But after gaining sole custody of his two kids, Josh had stepped up, filling the role of single parent as if born to it.
Cole patted Nathan on the head. The boy wore a tattered cowboy hat not unlike his own, though Cole’s fit better. “I think we should find your dad.”
Nathan insisted on leading Hurry Up. They got about fifty feet before Josh came running out of the horse stable, his year-old daughter, Kimberly, bouncing in his arms, his expression panicked. Spotting them, he drew up short.
Cole could see his brother struggling not to curse. He also saw the intense relief coursing through him. “Nathan! Criminy, son. How many times have I told you not to walk off like that?”
Nathan didn’t appear the least bit remorseful. “Hi, Daddy. I walking Hurry Up.”
The pup, thinking it was playtime, loped awkwardly over to Josh on gangly legs, the stick clenched in its mouth.
Cole waited for his brother to catch up. As they neared, his pretty little niece reached out her arms and babbled unintelligibly.
“You mind?” Josh handed over his daughter before Cole had a chance to reply.
“Hello, gorgeous.” Cole balanced the little girl against his chest as he’d seen Josh do.
She babbled some more and patted his cheeks. It was cute. Maybe he wouldn’t mind having a daughter.
Josh went down on one knee in front of his son. “Nathan, you can’t leave without telling me. Do you understand?”
Nathan stared at his father, then slowly nodded. Cole suspected the boy didn’t understand at all and was simply placating his dad.
Cole kept his niece busy and let father and son talk for several minutes. Eventually, Josh stood, emitting a long, low groan of frustration. “Kids,” he said, as if that explained everything.
Before today, Cole might have answered, “I wouldn’t know.” Now, he kept his mouth shut.
After lifting Nathan onto the horse’s back, Josh took Kimberly from Cole and plunked her in front of her brother. The two often went for rides, though lately Nathan had been less inclined to share, wanting Hurry Up for himself.
Josh gathered the lead rope in his hands. “What do you think the meeting’s about today?”
“Guess we’ll find out.”
“Gabe figures she’s going to ask for some time off, what with her parents divorcing.”
“He could be right.”
Josh studied Cole intently. “You know.”
“Why do you say that?” Now would probably be a good time to return to feeding.
“You’re hedging. You don’t hedge.”
“I promised Vi I wouldn’t say anything. Violet,” he quickly amended. Using a nickname implied intimacy.
His brother wasn’t fooled. “You two have gotten friendly lately.”
“We get along.”
“Get along or get along?”
“What are you implying?”
“Leroy said he saw you and Violet at the Poco Dinero a couple months back.”
“We danced some and shared a ride home.”
“Must have been a long ride. You didn’t come back till morning. I didn’t think much of it till Leroy said something.”
Cole thought he might have to find the talkative ranch hand and tell him to mind his own business, then decided bringing up that night would only make things worse.
“Want to go, Daddy,” Nathan whined impatiently. He didn’t like waiting.
“In a minute, son. I’m talking to Uncle Cole.”
“Don’t stay on my account,” Cole said, seeing an opportunity to escape further scrutiny.
“Come on. Walk with me.”
“I’m in the middle of feeding.”
“The horses can wait ten minutes.”
Cole would have manufactured another excuse, but he suddenly didn’t want to. He and his brother had always been close, sharing everything, including careers and confidences. Cole could count on Josh to keep Vi’s secret. Certainly for the next hour.
Besides, the fact was he could use some advice as well as a chance to unload. He’d grown tired of having only himself for counsel.
He and Josh set out on a course that circled the horse stables, Josh leading Hurry Up and his two young riders. The kids weren’t interested in the grown-ups, allowing Cole and Josh to talk relatively freely.
Cole cut right to the chase. “Vi’s pregnant.”
“You’re kidding!” Josh gaped at him. “Is it yours?”
“She told me Monday.” Cole gave a brief account of what had happened then and yesterday at the doctor’s office.
When he was done, Josh asked, “And you were together only the one night?”
“She didn’t think we should date. Said it wasn’t professional. That, and I think she considers me a flight risk, ready to leave at the drop of a hat.”
“What are you going to do?”
“We haven’t decided. She wants to wait.”
“That must be why she called the meeting. To tell us she’s pregnant.”
“She’s worried she might miscarry—it’s happened before. Three times, back when she was married.” Cole was growing fed up with circling the stables. His brother, however, appeared not to notice. Did people automatically start putting their children first when they became a parent? Would Cole? “Her doctor gave her strict orders to rest every day and not work so hard. Do you suppose the ranch has a policy regarding medical leave?”
“No idea. Gabe will have to answer that. If not, we’ll figure something out. She’s a good employee. I can’t imagine not trying to help her.”
Cole agreed. Vi had told him she’d been just eighteen when she came to Dos Estrellas, the summer after high school. The Dempseys had taken her in, giving her a home as well as a job. Raquel loved her like family, as had Cole’s late father.
Why hadn’t he shown Cole and Josh that kind of love? Was the estrangement really all their mother’s fault? She may have perpetuated it, but their dad hadn’t fought it, either.
“Why do you think Dad hated us?” Cole hadn’t intended to ask the question, it just slipped out.
“He didn’t,” Josh answered, in a somewhat tired voice. “The problem was him and Mom and their inability to get along.”
Cole suspected there’d been much more going on, but let the subject drop. Josh had reconciled his differences with their father a while ago and didn’t hang on like Cole. Perhaps because coming to Dos Estrellas had resulted in a safe, stable home for his children, a woman he loved and a job he’d come to believe was his calling.
Unfortunately, Cole was of a completely different mind. He liked cattle ranching well enough and someday might make it his living, but he still preferred busting broncs, training horses and chasing the sun to the next town.
“Are you remotely ready to be a dad?” Josh asked. “You haven’t ever been the settling down kind.”
“I want to be ready.”
“You’re going to have someone depending on you. Someone who can’t do the simplest of things for him or herself.”
Cole glanced over his shoulder at his niece and nephew and tried to see himself as their parent. It wasn’t easy. He’d been something of a drifter for the past twelve years.
“What if you made Mustang Valley your home base instead of Grandpa and Grandma’s?
Josh’s suggestion was a reasonable one. Except for one problem.
“I’m not sure Vi wants me here. She made it clear she’d rather go it alone than have a part-time dad in the picture.”
“She has a point. I tried that, and it didn’t work. I wound up with an addict for a wife and two children who suffered from neglect. If you’re not willing to fully commit, you might as well leave Violet to raise the baby by herself.”
Cole heard what his brother said, and also what he didn’t say: that if he failed to commit, he’d be just like their father, a man who’d abandoned his children.
Cole didn’t think he could stand another similarity between them. There were already too many.
He kept watch for Vi’s arrival, staying busy in the horse stables after finishing with the afternoon feeding. At last her pickup truck pulled into the driveway leading to the ranch.
He ignored the rush of relief coursing through him, along with the thrill of anticipation, and hurried to catch up. She was on her way to the house for their meeting. Her meeting.
“Hey, not so fast.”
Glancing back, she stopped and waited. Cole took it as a good sign that she didn’t race ahead.
“How are you doing?” He fell into step beside her.
“All right, I guess.”
Her face told a different story. It had a pinched, exhausted look made worse by the dark circles beneath her eyes.
Cole repressed a sudden urge to wrap her in his arms. Or maybe not so sudden. He’d felt the same when she’d told him about her pregnancy. If anything, this protectiveness was becoming a habit.
“Did you get a chance to rest?” he asked.
“Not really.”
“Too keyed up?”
“I’m not nervous.”
He had his doubts. This couldn’t be easy for her; it was a lot for anyone to handle.
“Did you at least put your feet up for a while?”
“I did.” She smiled, though it was difficult to interpret. She might have been pleased Cole cared, or she might be placating him.
He noticed she held a spiral notebook in the crook of her arm. Had she organized her thoughts? He could picture her sitting in her living room recliner, feet up and furiously scribbling away.
“It’s going to be fine,” he assured her. “There’s nothing Gabe won’t do for you.”
“What about you and Josh? Your votes count just as much as Gabe’s.”
“You know how I feel.”
“Do I?”
“You’re a great employee. You deserve time off.”
“I see.” She didn’t mask the disappointment in her voice.
“What do you want me to say, Vi? That I care about you and what happens? I do. I hope you have this baby, and I hope it’s born healthy. I’ll do my best to be a good father and a good provider. Whatever you need from me. But you said yourself, you want to wait.”
“You’re right. That wasn’t fair.” She started to say more, then faltered, seemingly at a loss for words.
“This is new territory for both of us,” he pointed out.
“Yeah, it is.” This time, her smile was genuine. “Two months ago, I wouldn’t have thought I’d be having this conversation with you.”
“Me, either.”
His response might have been a little too strong, for she grew abruptly quiet. Great. Well, too late now. They were at the ranch house.
They entered through the kitchen door, Cole waiting for Vi to go first. Raquel wouldn’t be attending the meeting, but she’d put out an array of refreshments. On the counter were pitchers of iced tea and cold water, along with a basket of warm, fresh-baked sopapillas, and honey to drizzle on them.
Cole picked up a paper plate and lifted the cover keeping the sopapillas warm. Having no shame, he took two.
“Want one?” he asked Vi.
