Texas-Sized Trouble. Barb Han

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      The chilly air goose-bumped her arms and Ryder had to stop himself from offering his jacket. Chivalry was ingrained in him, and he had to fight against his own cowboy code so that she wouldn’t think she was getting to him. Give her an inch and she’d stomp on him again with those fringed boots.

      “Even so, he’s the law and he’ll help you,” Ryder said. “He took an oath, and he takes it seriously.”

      “Braxton is a few counties over and out of his jurisdiction. That’s where Nicholas lives,” she said.

      “Tommy can make a few calls, do a little digging. If it makes you feel better, I’ll ask him myself.” Ryder had no clue why he’d just volunteered himself like that. He’d have time to curse himself later. The sheriff in Braxton wasn’t exactly known for being cooperative.

      An anguished sound tore from her throat. “That’s not good enough, and Tommy doesn’t care about Nicholas. I need answers now and I’m afraid something very bad has happened to him. I can’t afford to lose any more time, and someone follows me when I check on him.”

      Didn’t that get all of Ryder’s neck hairs to stand on end?

      “What makes you think so?” he asked.

      “I drove to Nicholas’s house to check on him when he stopped responding to my texts three days ago and an SUV followed me to the county line.”

      “Could’ve been random,” he said.

      “I’ve been out there every night, and last night the SUV tapped my bumper,” she said, rubbing her arms as if the memory gave her chills instead of the cold night air.

      Ryder didn’t like that. He’d take a minute to consider her position. He could concede that she’d had a point a few seconds ago. Tommy wasn’t likely to go above and beyond the call of duty for a McCabe. He’d arrested her brothers, who were immediately bailed out by the family lawyer too many times to have sympathy for any of them, even Faith.

      Her concern for her half brother seemed genuine. Ryder could tell based on the desperation in her honey browns. If the situation were reversed and one of his brothers had gone missing, he’d do whatever it took to find him. All five of his siblings were grown now, and good men, but they’d gotten themselves into a few tricky situations as teenagers. Ryder could buy the idea that a good kid could get into trouble. He had a harder time swallowing the idea that a McCabe offspring could be anything but trouble. Bad was in their blood. He’d believed Faith to be different from her family, and look how that had worked out for him.

      “How do you know he’s missing exactly?” he asked.

      “We talk every day without fail. I was supposed to help him with geometry homework and he stood me up. He’s never done that. Ever.” Her wide eyes conveyed panic and worry. When he examined her features, he saw how tired and worried she looked.

      “Have you spoken to his mother?” The teenager could have gotten himself in over his head or involved in drugs. Even so, none of this concerned Ryder, and Faith hadn’t given him one solid reason he should get involved. With her family’s money, she could hire an investigator.

      “We’re not exactly on good terms and I have nothing to say to the woman,” Faith said, and her left shoulder shot up. He’d seen that move before. She was being indignant.

      From his viewpoint, a quick phone call could most likely clear this whole thing up. If Faith was too stubborn to make that call she didn’t need to be reaching out to him to do her dirty work.

      “Then I can’t help you. That was my only card. I’m folding. If you really believe he’s missing, then you should talk to someone in law enforcement. His mother might’ve reported his disappearance already.” He threw his hands up in surrender. As it was, he was having a difficult time keeping a wall between them and maintaining his neutral position. A woman in trouble wasn’t something he could normally turn his back on. He blamed his Texas upbringing and the fact that he’d had amazing parents.

      “I’ll sweeten the pot,” she said quickly.

      “You don’t have anything I want,” Ryder said, pushing thoughts of how soft her skin had been when he ran his finger along the curves of her stomach out of his mind. Or how much the sound of her laughter had temporarily suspended the pain of losing his parents.

      “You want to know the real reason I walked away from you, Ryder O’Brien?” Now she was the one who was angry. He could see the fire in her eyes. Good. She’d get mad, spit out a few hostile words meant to offend him and then leave.

      Problem solved.

      “It doesn’t matter.” But his wounded pride said something else entirely—he wanted to know.

      “You sure about that?” she asked in her one-last-chance tone.

      “Have never been more certain of anything in my life.” If she wanted his help, making him angry was the wrong way to go about it. He didn’t like the idea of her putting herself in danger if that was the case, and he’d tried reasoning with her by telling her to bring in the law. If she didn’t have enough sense to stay out of harm’s way there wasn’t much he could do about it. “Why ask me to help in the first place? You had to know that I would refuse. You’re not exactly high on my list of people I want to see again.”

      “You won’t turn me down. I know you and there’s something I’ve been keeping from you...” She paused long enough to put her hands on her belly. “Anything happens to me and your child goes with me. You’re going to be a father, Ryder. And that’s why I left you. If anyone found out this was your child, then my life, heck, your life, would be over.”

      “Good one, Faith.” She wasn’t afraid to pull out all the stops on...

      Hold on a damn minute. The look on her face slapped him with a new reality. Was she serious?

      “That’s right, Ryder. I’m carrying your child.” Her lip quivered even though her words rolled off her tongue steady as steel.

      She wasn’t lying?

      He stood there for a long moment and stared at her, daring her to break the glaring contest and tell him she was joking. There was no way...

      Was there?

      A memory came back to him in a rush. He remembered one time when they’d been so lost and so into each other during their lovemaking neither had noticed that the condom he wore broke.

      Okay, so it was possible. But that didn’t mean...

      Ryder took a step toward Faith to really look into her eyes.

      “You’re pregnant?” he asked, knowing full well that he’d be able to tell if she faltered. She’d never been able to look him in the eyes and flat-out lie. Or at least that’s what he’d believed. How much did he get to know the real her in the few months they’d spent time together? She’d already shocked him once by walking out. And now she’d thrown him the last news he’d expected to hear from her.

      “Yes,” she said plain as day.

      “And the child is mine?”

      “Yes,” she said with that same certainty.

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