The Maverick's Secret Baby. Teri Wilson

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      “Where are we going, exactly?” Avery gripped her shopping bag until her knuckles turned white and did her best to resist the overwhelming urge to glance over her shoulder for another glimpse of the general store.

      Of Finn.

      She almost wanted to believe she’d imagined their entire awkward encounter just now. Since the moment she’d first spotted the two tiny pink lines on the drugstore pregnancy test she’d taken in her posh executive washroom at Ellington Meats, she’d tried to imagine what she’d say to Finn the next time she saw him. Somehow she always imagined she’d be able to utter more than two stuttered words.

      Had she managed to string a whole sentence together at all? Nope, she was pretty sure she hadn’t. So much for being a strong, independent woman and facing the situation head-on.

      “We’re not going anywhere, dear. I thought you were going to faint when you saw Finn Crawford. I made something up to get you out of there.” Melba gave her hand a comforting pat.

      So her panic had been that obvious? Fabulous.

      “Oh, thank you. But I was surprised, that’s all.” Shocked to her core was more like it.

      Which was really kind of ridiculous, since the whole reason she’d come to Rust Creek Falls was to tell him about the baby. Get in, drop the baby bomb and get out. That had been the plan. It was just so much harder than she’d imagined. And now here she was, a couple weeks later, still secretly pregnant.

      “Finn is an old friend.” She stared straight ahead as they walked back to the boarding house. What had just transpired at the general store was a minor setback, not a total disaster. It’s not like she could have told him she was pregnant right then and there.

       Hey, so great to see you. FYI, I’m having your baby, and I’m planning to raise it on my own. Just wanted to let you know. I’ve got to pay for my pile of flannel now. Have a nice life.

      Beside her, Melba snorted. “Well. He seems to have a lot of friends, if you know what I mean.”

      Avery’s steps slowed as her heart pounded hard in her chest. “I don’t, actually.”

      “It seems pretty obvious that you aren’t ready to jump into a relationship. In any event, from what I’ve heard, Finn Crawford wouldn’t be a great candidate.”

      Avery concentrated hard on putting one foot in front of the other as she turned Melba’s words over in her mind. She was almost afraid to ask for more information, but she had to, didn’t she? If the father of her baby was an ax murderer or something, that seemed like vital information to have. “Melba, what exactly have you heard?”

      The older woman shook her head. “Don’t get me wrong. He’s a right charming fellow—possibly too charming. He’s dated practically everyone in Rust Creek Falls since his family moved to town. It’s sweet that he asked you to dinner, but Finn isn’t right for a nice girl like you.”

       A nice girl like you.

      What on earth would Melba think if she knew the real story?

      Avery took a deep breath. The air smelled like cinnamon and nutmeg, courtesy of the decorative cinnamon brooms so many of the local business included in the fall pumpkin displays decorating the sidewalk. But the cozy atmosphere couldn’t get her mind off a troubling truth—Finn might not be a serial killer, but apparently, he was a serial flirt. Somehow she didn’t think a baby would fit neatly into a carefree lifestyle like the one Melba had just described.

      But that was fine. More than fine, really. She didn’t need Finn’s help. If she could run the business division of a Fortune 500 company, she could certainly raise a baby. Her father would blow a gasket once he found out his first grandchild was going to be a Crawford, but he’d get over it. Having Finn out of the picture might even make things easier, where the whole family feud matter was concerned.

      She obviously needed to let Finn know it was happening, though. That just seemed like the right thing to do. His reputation around Rust Creek Falls didn’t change a thing. It wasn’t as if she’d thought she could actually build a life with the man.

      Still, the fact that he’d been acting as if Montana was the set of Bachelor in Paradise while she was battling morning sickness and freaking out about starting a family with the son of her father’s sworn enemy stung a little bit.

      Who am I kidding? Avery climbed the steps of Strickland’s Boarding House alongside Melba and thought about all the nights she’d spent in this house, secretly wishing Finn would call or text out of the blue so she’d feel less awkward about their situation. Less lonely.

       It stings a lot.