Harlequin American Romance November 2014 Box Set: The SEAL's Holiday Babies\The Texan's Christmas\Cowboy for Hire\The Cowboy's Christmas Gift (18 page)

Closing the door for privacy, Nicole took a deep breath.
We have a problem.
But she swallowed back the words, wanting to put a positive spin on the situation. Would it really be so terrible if Lizzie had figured out that Delia Baron and Adele Black were the same woman? Whatever mistakes she'd made in the past, Adele was a wonderful person. The Baron siblings deserved to know their mother and vice versa.

The biggest drawback she could see to Lizzie and the others knowing Adele's identity was that Adele had been robbed of the opportunity to tell them herself. They might question whether she would have come forward of her own volition.

Nicole dropped into a chair, amazed she could be this tired so early in the day. There had been points in her career when she'd worked until ten o'clock at night without even realizing it. Now she felt as if she needed a nap by two in the afternoon. The half dozen pregnancy books loaded onto her e-reader said exhaustion was normal in the first trimester and often passed. Still, she'd feel better if she could get that confirmed from someone who'd been through it recently. She desperately wanted to confide in Lizzie, but it would be wrong to tell her before Adele, who'd known Nicole for so much longer and given her so many opportunities.

“Did you see Chris and Lizzie?” Adele sat forward in her chair, showing her eagerness for any scrap of information about her daughter.

“I did. They invited me to their house, but we cut lunch short. Your granddaughter is even more beautiful in person than in the pictures Chris emailed me.” There'd been a moment when Nicole first arrived, before the crying started, when Natalie had looked so angelic that tears had pricked Nicole's eyes. “She also has a healthy set of lungs on her. Her resistance to falling asleep made conversation difficult, so we rescheduled for Sunday. But, Adele, I'm afraid Sunday could get a little tricky.”

“How do you mean?”

“Lizzie said she had questions for me, but she didn't know how to ask because she knows I'm loyal to my employer. To you. She looked...shaken up. And she's not someone who rattles easily. I think she and Carly and the others may have figured out that you're their mother.”

So many emotions flashed across Adele's face that it was almost dizzying to watch. Joy and terror and disbelief and hope. “I don't know what to say.” She hugged her arms around herself. “I suppose I always knew it was a possibility, but as the years passed, it seemed less and less likely. I wasn't sure that, after what I did, they'd care enough to look.”

Had they gone searching for their mom, or had it been more of an accidental discovery? Considering Adele's name change, the latter seemed unlikely.

“You know you're one of the most important people in my life,” Nicole said, “professionally
and
personally. But I care about Chris and Lizzie, too. I don't want to lie to them.” Last spring, she'd respected Adele's wishes, surreptitiously gathering information to assure Adele her kids were thriving, because she hadn't seen the point in upsetting a pregnant Lizzie with news of a mother who was wasting away from cancer. But circumstances were different now.

“You want to tell them who I am on Sunday. Or, if you're right about them knowing, confirm it?”

“That's one option. The other is that perhaps you could get in touch with them yourself before then,” Nicole said gently.

“Oh, I don't know. I...” It took her a few seconds to compose herself enough to continue speaking. “You described Lizzie as ‘shaken up.' Not hopeful or wistful. She may not want to hear from me. And could you blame her? Walking away from those kids was a terrible, terrible thing.”

“You had extreme postpartum depression,” Nicole said. “You weren't entirely in your right mind.”

“Which is why I met with their father later and asked for visitation rights.”

Which he'd ruthlessly denied. Brock was a powerful, unyielding man with enough money to fund a team of lawyers. Instead of drawing her children into an ugly legal battle, Adele had left them in peace to bond with their new stepmother.

“I didn't fight hard enough for them,” Adele said, her voice low and full of shame. “I could have reached out to them once they were no longer minors, but...how could I face them after all that time? How can I face them now?”

“For what it's worth,” Nicole said, “if my own mom tracked me down, I'd want to see her. I'd like to think I've forgiven her for doing what she thought was in my best interest.”

Gina Marie Bennett, a pregnant teenager, had angered her parents by not putting her baby up for adoption. As soon as she turned eighteen, they kicked her and Nicole out of the house. Two years later, burdened with a drug problem and a malnourished toddler, Gina Marie had sought refuge in a church during a devastating thunderstorm. For a decade, Nicole had bounced between foster care and an intermittently sober Gina Marie.

Her mother hadn't shown up for a scheduled visit on Nicole's fourteenth birthday. Nicole had held out hope that her mother would eventually return, that they could be a family. But she'd never seen her mom again. When Nicole was sixteen and living in a different home, she received a forwarded Christmas card with no return address. In it, her mother had written that her beautiful daughter deserved a better life than a druggie could provide. Gina Marie had loved her enough to get rid of her, but not enough to stay clean for her.

Now, looking at Adele, Nicole's eyes misted.
What a pair we are.
One woman who had been dumped by her mom and another who'd walked away from her kids. It didn't take a psychology degree to see how they'd helped fill certain holes in each other's life. But maybe Adele didn't have to settle for a stand-in daughter. Her biological children had never been more in reach.

“If nothing else, you should tell them you're sorry,” Nicole added. “It would be good for them and for you.”

Adele bit her lip, unconvinced. “I don't want to clear my own conscience at the expense of upsetting them. I know I've already asked far more of you than is appropriate, but can you do me one more favor? When you see them on Sunday, let them know I'm in Dallas, that I'd give anything to see them. But the choice is theirs. If they prefer, I can fade away like I was never here.”

Nicole had been Adele's emissary in hundreds of professional situations. She had mixed feelings about serving that role in this capacity, but if there was any chance she could help reunite a family...

“Okay.” She prayed that she was right about Lizzie and the others wanting a second chance with their mother. If not, Adele would be crushed.

Meanwhile, since Nicole was being so vocal about her friend coming clean and sharing her secrets, maybe it was only fair she take her own advice. “Just so you know, there's one other thing I want to discuss with Lizzie on Sunday. But I can't imagine telling her—or anyone else—before first telling you. I'm...”

The word was momentous. She paused, struck anew by the magnitude of her choice. Happiness spread through her, a buzz of warmth and excitement. “I'm pregnant.”

Adele's eyes widened. She opened her mouth, but no words came out.

“So, I guess it's safe to say you weren't expecting that?” Nicole's queasiness and unusual lack of energy would have eventually given her away, but since she'd been in Dallas for only a day, there hadn't been enough opportunity for Adele to notice yet.

“N-no, definitely not! I have to admit, I've worried at times that taking such good care of me didn't leave you any room for dating. I—”

“The only ‘date' involved in conceiving this baby was the cozy night I spent sitting by the fireplace and reading donor files. Well, and the day I had the procedure done, of course.”

“Procedure? You were artificially inseminated?” Adele's shock didn't seem to be abating.

“Why not?” Was there a touch of defensiveness in her tone? She dropped a hand to her still-flat abdomen. “I don't know what the future has in store for me, but I know I'm ready to be a mom. Guy or no guy in my life, I want this.” Unlike Nicole's younger self, this baby would never, ever feel unwanted. He or she would be completely secure in Nicole's love. “Be happy for me?”

“Of course I am, dear!” The confusion and surprise in Adele's expression faded. “You're going to make a wonderful mom. And if there's anything I can do to help along the way, to repay you for—”

“There's nothing that needs repaying,” Nicole insisted. Taking care of Adele hadn't been a selfless act. It had allowed Nicole to feel as if she had some measure of control, even if it was only an illusion. Watching her friend go through that terrible illness had been wrenching, but it would have been even worse if Nicole had felt useless. Cooking Adele doctor-recommended foods and coaxing her to eat had made Nicole feel like a member of the team, as if she was doing her part—no matter how small—to help beat back the cancer.

“A baby.” Adjusting to the idea, Adele grinned delightedly. “You do know that, as honorary grandmother, I'm going to spoil the kid rotten?”

“I'm sure she, or he, will learn a lot from you. God knows I have.”

There was no question that Adele would make a wonderful honorary grandmother. But Nicole hoped that by the time her child was born in seven and a half months, Adele would already have plenty of practice with her other grandchildren.

Chapter Three

There was a certain kind of soreness Daniel found gratifying—the kind that came from a challenging workout or staying out all night dancing with pretty ladies. As he exited the therapy building Thursday afternoon, he felt sore but upbeat. His physical therapist had not been what he expected. A gorgeous redhead, Sierra Bailey had a face like a porcelain doll and the soul of a drill sergeant.

After explaining the pendulum exercises she wanted him to do at home, she'd warned, “I'll know if you don't do them. And there will be hell to pay.”

He believed her. He also believed she was eminently qualified to whip him back into shape. The plan was to start with a regimen that increased his range of motion and flexibility. Strength would come later. Sierra had told him that once he'd regained enough mobility, she'd add biceps exercises. He couldn't wait to feel like his old self again. He might even spend some extra time at the Roughneck so he could use the ranch's heated pool for some of his exercises.

As he turned onto the sidewalk that cut through the medical complex toward the parking lot, he spotted a dark-haired woman coming from the other direction. She had a hand against her midsection, and his first thought was that she might be in pain. Then the wind tossed her hair back, away from her face. Nicole Bennett? Unlike the tension he'd glimpsed in her face the other day, now she wore a dreamy expression. She radiated a serenity he wasn't sure he personally had ever experienced.

“Nicole?” he called.

She looked up, startled. He felt a twinge of guilt for disrupting her moment of peace. “Daniel.” Her voice was breathier than he remembered.

“Did you have an appointment here?” He circled his finger, indicating the horseshoe cluster of buildings that housed medical professionals ranging from orthodontists to podiatrists. Didn't Nicole live in San Antonio? It seemed odd she would have a doctor in Dallas. Not that it was any of his business.

“Oh.” She blinked. “I, um...”

“Sorry. Didn't mean to pry. I was just surprised to run into you. I was meeting with my physical therapist for the first time.”

Nicole cocked her head, studying him. “Chris mentioned you were hurt bull riding. Was it bad?” Her dark eyes were still roving over his body, ostensibly checking for injury, but his hormones didn't seem to care about the platonic reason for her scrutiny. Awareness simmered through him, clouding his thoughts to the point where he could barely remember her question.

“Whoops.” She dropped her gaze. “Guess I'm the one prying now.”

“No, that's okay. I...” Got distracted. By her eyes. Maybe best not to say that to a near stranger. “My injury was bad enough to need outpatient surgery. I consider myself lucky. Could have been a lot worse. Brock's living proof of that.” It was ironic, given their many differences, that he and his stepfather had this one thing in common—being knocked on their butts by an ornery bull.

“When I visited Dallas in April, he was in a wheelchair. He's better now?”

“He's back on his feet, but I don't think Julieta's going to let him enter any more senior rodeos.”

“What about you? Do you plan to get back in the saddle?”

“I haven't made up my mind, but...probably not.” It was easier to admit that to a virtual stranger than his rodeo-centric family. “I enjoyed competing. I
love
winning. But I'm ready for something new. I've been thinking a lot about my future lately, trying to decide what I want to be when I grow up,” he joked. “Sometimes you reach a point when it's time to take the next step in your life, you know?”

“I do.” Something flickered in her eyes, and she took a deep breath, as if trying to steady herself.

“Are you okay?” He wouldn't be surprised if the idea of facing all the Barons this weekend was giving the poor woman an ulcer.

“Absolutely. But I should be getting back to my office.”

“Right. See you Sunday.” He lifted his hand in a brief wave, but it quickly became apparent that, although they'd been coming from opposite directions, they were both headed to the same section of the parking lot. The silence between them as they fell in step frayed his nerves.

He couldn't help feeling as if Nicole was headed into the lion's den on Sunday. Growing up on the ranch, he'd had Jacob as an ally. He wanted Nicole to feel she had someone in her corner, too.

“I realize it's not my place to say this,” he began, “but there's some history between your employer and the Barons. I don't want you to be caught in the middle. Adele Black, she...”
Now what, genius?
The rest of his unfinished sentence was a Pandora's box he shouldn't open.

“Adele is their mother,” Nicole said quietly.

His shoulders slumped in relief. “You know.” If it was information she already possessed, then he hadn't crossed any lines by addressing the subject.

She nodded. “And now you've answered my question about whether or not Lizzie and the others know. I was already planning on having a very candid conversation with them, but it's nice to have an idea of what I'm walking into.” She was back to studying him—this time, searching his gaze with naked curiosity. “I'm surprised you brought it up, though.”

So am I.
He'd made it a policy to stay out of discussions about Brock's first wife. But he hadn't wanted Nicole to show up at the ranch unprepared. Did that make him disloyal to his stepsiblings? “Well, the Barons can be intense. They—”

“They? Not ‘we'?” She gave him a teasing smile. “Aren't you a Baron, too?”

“On paper.” Daniel had wondered more than once if his mom had asked Brock to adopt her boys to provide another layer of insulation between them and convicted felon Oscar Burke. No one at their new school would dare bully a Baron. “I mean, my brother, Jacob, and I are technically Barons, but we weren't born into it. Lizzie and Carly and the others are great. But as kids, with immature sibling rivalry and the awkwardness of meshing two households...”

“I get it. I was a foster kid and lived with some nice families through the years. But even with the ones I felt closest to, they weren't really
my
family.”

Hearing about her upbringing made him feel ungrateful. At least he and Jacob had always had a home, always had each other. Who did Nicole Bennett have?

She stopped next to a compact car that sported a decal logo for a well-known rental company. “This is mine, temporarily anyway. Thank you for looking out for me.” She surprised him by reaching out, squeezing his forearm gently. At her touch, a rush of endorphins replaced his earlier soreness. He didn't know which he was enjoying more—the contact between them or the way she was looking at him. Her admiring expression did more to make him feel like a badass than any rodeo buckle he'd ever won. “I'm glad you'll be there this weekend, Daniel.”

Something shorted in his brain when she said his name, and he heard himself ask, “Would you like a ride? Sunday, obviously. Not now.”
What are you doing?
He lived five miles from the ranch and had been trying to stay out of his siblings' investigation of their mom. So why was he volunteering to go completely out of his way to pick up Adele's second-in-command?

She chuckled. “Is this because you feel sorry for me?”

“No, ma'am.” If she thought pity was the only reason a man would want to spend time with her, she clearly didn't own a mirror. “I, uh, wasn't supposed to drive much after my fall, so I've been having to rely on volunteer chauffeurs. It feels so good to be in the driver's seat again, I'm looking for excuses to get behind the wheel.” Thank God Jacob couldn't hear him now. He'd never let Daniel live down such a lame excuse.

“Plus, GPS isn't always reliable out in rural areas,” he continued, powering through the embarrassment. Rodeo taught a man to hang on tight and keep going. “If you ride with me, there's no chance of getting lost, with the added bonus that you know there'll be a friendly face as soon as you arrive.”

“I'd like that.” She met his eyes, and color tinged her cheeks. “I'd like that a lot.”

They exchanged phone numbers and she typed the address where she was staying into his contact list. Daniel climbed into his truck, whistling under his breath and unable to remember the last time he'd been so eager for one of the weekly family gatherings.

* * *

“Y
OU
ARE
A
bad influence,” Nicole chided, leaning back in her chair. “We should be at the office.”

Adele grinned. “I notice you didn't let guilt stop you from enjoying that giant cinnamon roll.” It had been Adele's idea to sneak away from work early and window-shop at the extravagant Galleria. They'd covered much of the first two floors before Adele's energy began to flag. Nicole had suggested they get a snack and watch the ice skaters on the rink below. Amateurs wobbled around the edge of the oval while a few standouts in sparkly leotards and skirts executed athletic spins in the center.

Truthfully, Nicole probably should feel guiltier about leaving the office. She'd already missed an hour that morning when she'd interviewed the new OB. Thinking about how Adele had gotten a second medical opinion here in Dallas, Nicole had realized she should probably get a backup obstetrician. Since traveling wasn't generally prohibited until the last trimester, she might spend a good chunk of her pregnancy here. It would be smart to have someone local who knew her history. She'd liked Dr. Davis and had scheduled an ultrasound with him for next week. She couldn't wait to see the first sonogram photograph, even though she knew the earliest pictures weren't discernible as babies.

“Thinking about the baby?” Adele asked.

“How'd you know?”

Adele looked pointedly at Nicole's stomach, where her hand rested. “A lot of pregnant women fall into the unconscious habit of doing that. As if we need some way to commune with the babies before we can feel them moving, as if it makes them more real somehow.”

Even knowing Adele's history, it was still difficult to remember sometimes that she'd gone through four pregnancies.

“So everything went all right at the doctor's?” Adele asked.

“Fine. He didn't examine me today. This was more of a quick meet and greet to fill out all the paperwork and make sure I was comfortable with him. You'll never believe who I ran into—Daniel Baron.”

Adele blinked. “At the OB-GYN's?”

“No. Outside. It's the same health-care complex where he has physical therapy. He mentioned you, confirmed that the Barons know you're their mother.”

Adele nodded, unsurprised. After Nicole's suspicions earlier in the week, Adele had discovered her children had definitely been searching for her. She'd even touched base with an old friend, Genevieve Lewis in Lubbock, who said Carly Baron came to visit, asking questions about her long-lost mother.

Swirling her straw around in what was left of her lemonade, Nicole recalled the unexpectedly protective tone in Daniel's voice.
I don't want you to be caught in the middle.
She was touched that he cared. Since Nicole had learned young that people in her life were temporary, she'd spent a lot of years looking out for herself. She wasn't used to feeling as if someone had her back—especially someone she hardly knew.

In fact, she wasn't sure which she found more charming, that he'd gone out of his way to prepare her for a meeting with his family or how he'd stumbled over asking if she wanted to ride with him. Daniel was very tall, with a chiseled jawline and natural swagger. The man routinely dealt with two-thousand-pound bulls, yet
she
had the power to fluster him? Heady thought. It made her feel as if they were even for that moment when they'd first shook hands last spring and she'd barely been able to remember the word
hi.

Adele stared across the table, her expression shrewd. “Maybe you should tell me more about this Daniel.”

“With the way you've tried to keep up with the Barons over the years? You probably know more about him than I do.” Even though Daniel wasn't related to the others by blood, Nicole was sure her employer would have wanted at least some data on the guy who'd grown up with her children. “I've only seen him on a handful of occasions.”

“Still, I've always respected your instincts. First impression?”

He has incredible green eyes.
“I think he has a strong sense of justice, a desire for things to be fair. When Lizzie invited me to the ranch, he objected that they were ganging up on me.” Integrity was a good quality, but she wondered how he coped when life was so often unfair. She knew his mother had died when he was still relatively young. And now his rodeo career may be ending right when he was in his prime.

She also knew, from the way he talked about the Barons as “they,” that he felt a little like an outsider, but she kept that observation to herself. It was a feeling she'd experienced far too often in her own life. Her first real sense of belonging had come from her promotions at AB Windpower and the connection that had grown between her and Adele.

“I so appreciate the chances you've given me,” she said. “Obviously we still have tons of time before I'll need maternity leave, but I want you to know I plan to come back as dedicated as ever.”

“First of all, I never gave you anything you didn't earn. As for as the other part... Your job's not going anywhere, and I hope you stay on in a full-time position for years to come. But having a child changes you.” Adele glanced out across the skaters, as if she were trying to hide the sadness in her expression. She couldn't disguise the regret in her voice. “Sometimes in ways you never could have predicted or would have believed of yourself.”

* * *

T
HE
L
ONGHORN
S
ALOON
was doing a thriving business on Friday night. Daniel stepped inside with his brother, wondering if they'd be able to find seats. Jacob waved to someone in the crowd then turned to tell Daniel, “Jet's got us a table already.”