Once Burned (27 page)

“Yep.”

“When are they due?”

“Mid July.”

“Looks like the Hammond clan is growing by leaps and bounds this Christmas,” Tracie said, turning her head over her shoulder to kiss her husband.

Henry turned to Lindsay as congratulations were offered to Nick and Beth, Henry and Lindsay, and Aaron and Skye. Clasping her face, he kissed her to the cheers of their families.

* * *

Following Lindsay’s directions, Henry navigated the winding streets of Max and Giselle Ulrich’s upscale suburban neighborhood, glancing occasionally at the ring glittering on Lindsay’s hand to keep his heart rate at a steady if slightly elevated level. It wasn’t nervousness that coursed through him. It was the urge to punch Max the second he met the man. Noah hadn’t wanted to leave Northstar to spend a couple days with his father and had, last night, lowered himself to begging. He’d even called his father to ask if he could come some other time, but Max had staunchly refused.

So, here they were, pulling into a slushy gray driveway in front of a two-story mini-mansion. Henry sneered as he climbed out of his truck and took in the sight of the house’s sharply peaked roofs and professionally landscaped yard. Max and his wife could afford this but they couldn’t be troubled to help Lindsay buy things Noah
needed
? They climbed the steep, terraced walk to the front door and knocked. Moments later, a stunning woman who could have graced magazine covers opened the door. Standing beside her, Lindsay was comparatively plain… and ten times more exquisite because hers was a natural attractiveness bolstered by the beauty of her fighting spirit. On her heels was a man Henry guessed was Noah’s father. Max was a couple inches shorter than Henry and dressed smartly in slacks and a crisp button-up shirt and looked Henry over with all the haughtiness his rich suburbanite abode and attire encapsulated.

“What is
he
doing here, Lindsay?” Max demanded, turning sharply to her. “I distinctly remember tell you I didn’t want him around our son.”

Henry replied before either Lindsay or Giselle could recover from their shock at Max’s less than civil greeting. “You gave up any right to tell Lindsay who should or should not be allowed around her son when you left her to raise Noah alone. Let’s get something out in the open right now. I don’t like you any more than you like me, and we can either make asses out of ourselves by getting into a knock-down-drag-out fight right here on your front steps with all your neighbors watching, or we can act like grown men and set aside our dislike and prevent every dealing we have with each other from today forward from turning into a brawl.” He extended his hand in a peace offering, and Max stared at it for a moment. “It’s your call, and I strongly suggest you take my offer for Noah’s sake because Lindsay and I are engaged, so we
will
have to deal with each other a lot.”

Max continued to ignore his hand, so he dropped it.

“I’ll excuse your behavior because you don’t know me. Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Henry Hammond, youngest of three sons. My family owns a large cattle ranch in Northstar, Montana, that I helped them run until after I graduated from college with a degree in industrial arts. After that, I worked as a welder and machinist in Denver—making six figures a year, if you care to know—until I moved back home to the ranch in August, which is when I met Lindsay. I love Noah as much as I would love my own son, and I will do everything in my power to make sure he knows that and what it is to be a good man.”

He refrained—barely—from adding,
That’s a lesson he sure as hell isn’t likely to learn from you.

“Get off my front steps,” Max snarled. “And stay away from my son.”

“I don’t want him to stay away from me,” Noah snapped. “He loves me a lot more than you do, and he
wants
me around!”

The unexpected outburst cooled Henry’s anger, and equally unexpectedly, one corner of his mouth lifted in amusement and fondness. They were going to have a wonderful life together, the three of them, and as he’d told Lindsay, Max couldn’t take that love away from them, and if he tried, well, he’d only end up making it even stronger.

“Noah,” he said quietly, giving the boy’s shoulder a squeeze. “It’s all right. You don’t need to defend me because your dad’s just looking out for you, doing the same thing I would in his place. Aren’t you, Max?”

Noah’s father didn’t respond. He stared at his son in utter disbelief. Noah glared back, unflinching.

“Not fun to be on the receiving end of his frustration, is it, Max,” Lindsay remarked without heat. “I’ve been putting up with it for years, and it isn’t fair when I’m not the parent who keeps routinely breaking his heart. And since it’s patently obvious Noah spending New Years with you is more about avenging whatever wrong you think I did to you, I’m going to change my mind. No, Noah, you don’t have to stay. You can come with Henry and me, so why don’t you go wait in the car?”

Noah didn’t have to be told twice. He bounded down the steps and had ensconced himself in Henry’s truck before Max could pull the words of his objection together.

“No,” he said. “I have rights to see my son.”

“Yes, you do, but the beauty of our open agreement is that we never specified when or for how long. You’re the one who wanted it that way, remember?” Lindsay glanced up at Henry and flashed him a smile before turning again to her ex. “It’s past time I let go of whatever ridiculous guilt I feel over your unwillingness to be a father and decide what is best for
my
son.”

“And you think this man is best for him?”

“I would have thought the ring on my finger made that obvious.”

Giselle, who had been standing rigidly beside her husband throughout the entire exchange, said quietly, “I warned you this would happen, Max. Didn’t I tell you to either cut ties or put forth a real effort? You can’t be a father when it’s convenient for you. You have, by your own indecision, given all your rights to Lindsay when it comes to making decisions for Noah.”

“You’re against me now, too?”

“No one was ever against you, Max,” Lindsay replied. “That’s what you’ve never understood. You think this whole thing is some ploy to ruin your life, but it’s not. It’s nothing more than a simple error in judgment that just so happened to land us with a son. If you want to stay in Noah’s life, that’s fine, but I’m not going to force you to be a part of it. From now on, you can tell me when you want to see him or talk to him because I’m done fighting with you. It takes too much energy, and I have too many good things going on in my life now that I plan to hang on to with both hands. Call me later if you want to reschedule this visit.”

Henry couldn’t remember when he’d ever been as proud of someone as he was of Lindsay right now as she threaded her fingers with his, wished the Ulrichs a happy New Year, and headed down the walk to the truck. Neither she nor Henry turned to watch Max and Giselle disappear inside, and when they reached the driveway, Henry yanked her into his arms, grinning.

“I think that went well,” he said. “All things considered.”

“I suppose so, but I guarantee that that was rather more abrupt than he’s used to.”

“Hey, I didn’t punch him, and I was damned tempted at the beginning.”

“I’m sure you were. I know I don’t need to ask because your playful tone and that lazy smile are answer enough, but I want to hear you say it.”

“Say what?”

“That I get to keep my beautiful ring and that you still want to marry me after meeting my asshole ex and finding out exactly what dealing with him is like.”

“Of course you get to keep your ring, gorgeous, and you bet you sweet heart I still want to marry you… even more than I did before, if that’s possible.” He kissed her. “I told you I wasn’t going to change my mind because of Max. Do you believe me now?”

She angled her body closer to his, sliding her hands between his arms and his ribs and splaying them possessively across his upper back. “With not one single doubt left. You’ve banished them all.”

He took her hand and spun her like he might if they were dancing, then opened her door. “Since it appears Noah no longer has to spend New Years with his father, shall we all head back to Northstar to finish out your vacation?”

“I’d love that. Noah, what do you say?”

“Heck yeah!”

“All right, then,” Henry said after he slid in behind the wheel. “Let’s go home so we can get to planning our future. Starting with whether we’re going to live in Washington or Northstar.”

“That’s an easy one, isn’t it, Noah?” Lindsay asked her son.

“It is, is it? Okay, which one?”

“You just answered that when you said ‘let’s go home,’ Henry,” Noah replied. “Northstar, of course.”

“You’re sure you don’t need to think about it?”

“What’s to think about?” Lindsay inquired. “You’ve said yourself that you were glad to be home on your ranch with your family. And it’s where I’m happiest, and where my dream of opening my own catering business might actually become a reality thanks to you and your scheming and Marvin and Mary Struthers and June and Ben Conner for giving me the opportunity. How could I want to live anywhere else?”

“That’s all well and good,” Henry teased, “but what about Noah?”

“Henry,” the boy said with a dramatic seriousness. “You live on a ranch. Life doesn’t get much better for a kid than that.”

“Twist my arm a little more, why don’t you?”

“I don’t think we need to,” Lindsay laughed. “Is this really happening?”

“It really is,” Henry replied, leaning across the cab to kiss her as he turned the key in the ignition.

“So,” Noah said, sitting forward. “When do I get a little brother or a little sister?”

Henry joined Lindsay in laughter. “Let’s give your mom a chance to get that degree she’s always wanted to earn, all right, bud? Besides, I’m in no hurry because we already have you.”

HENRY SPOTTED HIS WIFE making her way through the sea of students slowly flowing out the doors of the gym where commencement had recently ended. Dressed in a black robe and matching mortarboard with golden
summa cum laude
cords draped around her neck. She was possibly as beautiful as she’d been almost four years ago in her wedding gown. Maybe more so. Loose-fitting as her graduation robe was, it didn’t obscure her growing belly, and memory of her joking this morning about being pregnant at her graduation for the second time in her life brought a brighter smile to his face. She’d followed the comment with an observation that this time she wasn’t a scared teenager but a confident business owner and wife looking forward to the birth of their child with nothing but excitement. He couldn’t be more proud of her.

Steve and Debbie Miller stood with him, along with his parents and brothers and their families. Beside him, Noah bounced, trying to see over the crowd of families waiting to congratulate their graduates.

“Do you see her yet?” he asked.

“Yep, she’s almost here.”

When she reached them, Henry wrapped his arms around her thighs and lifted her off the ground. Laughter spilled out of her, and she braced her forearms on his shoulders, then lowered her head to kiss him.

“So, gorgeous, how’s it feel to be a college graduate?” he asked.

“Absolutely amazing,” she replied. “I couldn’t have done it without you.”

“Sure you would have.” He set her down and toyed with her honors cords. “These are all you, love. You worked your butt off these last four years, and I am so proud of you.”

“Maybe I did the work, but your support made it possible for me to do it, so just hush up and accept your due praise.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Debbie embraced her daughter. “I am so happy of you’ve finally had a chance to go after your dreams and so proud that you’ve done it with such drive.
Summa cum laude
!”

Henry stepped to her side so the rest of their families could congratulate Lindsay. She might not have had the same wonder-filled experience he, her parents, or her friends had had in college, but she’d taken the knowledge and life experience and come out with higher honors than any of them.

Unable to help himself, he smoothed his hand over her belly. How incredible it was to feel that and the nudges? With sixteen weeks left to go, those movements were still small, but Henry was thrilled nonetheless. He couldn’t wait to meet his son. “How’s the munchkin?”

He liked the way her smile turned shy as she laid her hand over his. “Busy.”

“Obviously.” He turned to his mother. “Sorry the Hammond Curse struck again, Mom.”

Tracie shrugged and pulled Jessie close. “I already have a granddaughter and three beautiful, wonderful daughters-in-law. Besides, with three boys of my own, I’m better equipped for grandsons.”

“I know I’m definitely better equipped for boys,” Lindsay remarked, pulling Noah close. “And I know my first will have a blast teaching his little brother why football is such a great game. Won’t ya, bud?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“All right, folks. We should probably get headed out to lunch if we want to beat the crowds,” Henry announced. “Besides, I have a surprise for Lindsay, and I want to give it to her before Max and Giselle join us.”

Debbie leaned close to him and remarked for his ears only, “You mean, you
don’t
want to rub it in his face that you’re a better man than he ever dreamed of being?”

“I have no need,” Henry replied. “And anyhow, he’s come around a lot in the last four years.”

“So he has.”

Henry didn’t know if it was jealousy that Noah preferred him to Max, competitiveness, Henry’s advice to appreciate what a treasure Noah was, or a realization that he might completely lose his son that had spurred Max to willingly take a more active role in Noah’s life, and it didn’t matter. Henry was glad it had happened. They still weren’t fond of each other, but he and Max were civil, and that was good for both Noah and Lindsay. Of course, he wasn’t thrilled that Max had decided he needed a visit with his son this particular weekend, but he’d long ago promised he encourage father and son to spend time together, even if that meant that his “encouragement” was sometimes nothing more than keeping his mouth shut.

They drove across town to Papa T’s and managed to arrive before the restaurant filled up with other graduates. As soon as everyone had gathered around the long table, Henry pulled a plain white envelope with the logo of Lindsay’s company—Blue Diamond Catering after her engagement ring—out of his back pocked and unfolded it before handing it to his wife.

“What is this?” she asked, frowning.

“Just open it.”

She did and stared at the small receipt with a frown. “What is this?”

“It’s a deposit receipt for twenty thousand dollars made to the account of Blue Diamond Catering.”

“I know that, but what
is
it? Where did it come from?”

“It’s the ten grand Mel paid me back plus interest and a little extra from—” He gestured around the table at the adults gathered, both the Millers and the Hammonds. “—your family. It should be more than enough to cover the rest of the equipment and signage you need for the new kitchen.”

Lindsay pressed her fingertips to her mouth and met his gaze with watery eyes. “Thank you. Thank you all.”

Henry leaned back in his chair with his ankles crossed and his hands knitted behind his head and listened as the others discussed Lindsay’s plans for expanding her catering business now that she was finished with school and could focus her full attention on it. June’s party planning business had taken off, and Lindsay had barely been able to keep up while she had classes and homework eating up so much of her time, but she’d already crafted a plan to not only meet the Ramshorn’s need but expand into Devyn by hiring a few of her classmates to help her accomplish it. With her drive and talent and a new, fully equipped industrial kitchen, Henry had no doubt that she’d succeed spectacularly.

As for him… he had everything in life he wanted. His temporary move back to the Lazy H Ranch had become permanent, and like his brothers before him, his need for adventure was now fully satisfied by his wife and her charming son. He might mot be making as much money as he had in Denver, but he enjoyed the work more than enough to compensate. And best of all, he had a wife he adored, a stepson he loved, and in a few short months, he’d be a father. For real this time.

Spontaneously, Henry jumped to his feet and offered his hand to Lindsay. When she took it, he settled his other hand on her waist and led her in a silly dance that soon had everyone at their table laughing.

“Looks like we salvaged more than just a night when you invited yourself to have a drink with me, Mrs. Hammond,” he murmured.

“Indeed we did,” she replied, pressing her lips to his. “We salvaged our hearts.”

* * * * *

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