Maverick (Star Valley Book 3) (9 page)

“I…I…” Austin blew out a harsh breath and ran his hand through his hair. “
I will
,” he finally said firmly.

“I know you will,” Walker replied. “Because if you
don’t
, I’ll kick your ass all the way from Star Valley to Cody and we’ll stay there until we
do
find out. She’s a kid, Austin. And she’s in trouble.”

Austin frowned. “She might be playing us.”

“She might be, but you don’t
know
she is. And don’t you think maybe you ought to find out first, before you start pointing pistols at
her
?”

Austin’s head whipped up. “I would
never
—!”

“You might as well have, Austin, if the look on her face was anything to go by. Hell, shooting her might’ve been more humane than what you just did.”

It wasn’t often that Austin so thoroughly screwed the pooch, that was more Court’s area of expertise. Having done it so spectacularly this time, he felt lower than dirt, worse, actually, than his twin brother’s gaze was trying to make him feel right now.

“You’re right,” he declared, and turned toward the door.

Walker reached out and snared his shoulder. “You need to pack a bag, get some sleep, and in the morning go find out if you’ve been planting more than just
grass
seed in Wyoming.” Walker smirked at him. “I’d send you tonight, but I think making you sit up straight at the dining room table with a knife and fork would go a long way to bringing back your manners before you try to talk to her again.”

Ordinarily, Austin would argue with his twin, choosing to follow his own instincts rather than listen to anyone else’s opinion. But the truth was, he had no idea what to say to Leah when he finally tracked her down. And it might be a good idea to figure out what that would be before he showed up on her door.

Sofia looked furious and suddenly Austin saw his mother’s face, rather than the woman standing in front of him. All the breath went out of him and he collapsed against the counter putting his face in his hands. He felt
her
hand on him, squeezing his shoulder, and imagined it was his mother and cringed at what she’d have to say to him at this moment. “I fucked up,” he said, as much to his mother as to Sofia standing in front of him.

“Fix it.”

‡

L
eah leaned back
in the passenger seat and tried to relax now that Austin Barlow and the Snake River Ranch had disappeared from the side mirror entirely. She didn’t quite know whether to be relieved it was finally over or angry about how it’d gone. Apparently, it was both.

She hadn’t expected it to go
well
, of course, but the disdain with which he’d treated her wasn’t anything she’d imagined, either. She silently chastised herself. Too much whiskey and not enough time spent getting to know someone was a disastrous combination. Apparently Austin’s face was the only thing angelic about him. He had a personality like a rabid badger and a forked tongue capable of slicing to the bone.

She pressed the heels of her hands over her eyes and willed herself not to cry. It didn’t matter what he said about her. She knew the truth and that was really all that mattered. She was happy just to let it go, but Candace seemed just as upset, or more, than Leah was. The girl slammed her hands on the steering wheel with a huff.

“I can’t believe it!” Candace cried. “I cannot believe he was such an
asshole
!”

“It’s fine,” said Leah, just happy to be going back home to Cody.

“Leah, it’s not fine.”

“
It will be
.”

Leah believed that—had to believe it—because there weren’t any other options. She’d just have to take things one day at a time, one test at a time, one doctor’s visit at a time, and she knew all about that, at least. Fortunately or unfortunately, Leah’s entire life had prepared her for this moment. And whether Austin wanted to be a part of it or not was immaterial and frankly, it might be easier to do it on her own, without anyone else’s input or opinions to consider.

“I can do this,” she said firmly.

“No one’s saying you can’t. But you shouldn’t have to. I still feel like this is all my fault. Your first big step into the real world and I led you straight into a hornet’s nest.”

“It is what it is, Candace. And saying it’s anyone’s fault makes it sound like it’s a bad thing. It isn’t bad. It’s incredible! And I’m not going to let Austin Barlow ruin it. Not a chance.”

“You’re right,” said Candace reaching across the seat and squeezing Leah’s hand. “I didn’t mean like that. Of course this baby is amazing and of course it’s the best thing that’s ever happened to you. I just meant I should’ve steered you to a better guy.”

Leah didn’t know if those existed or, if they did, where she might look for one. She simply had to make do with what she had, which was a life inside her and a ferocious instinct to protect it, even from its own father if need be.

She flipped the radio on to disengage from the conversation. The drive went smoothly enough after that, with her only needing to stop every few hours for something to eat to quell the roiling nausea. She sniffed at the hot dog which had been roasting in a convenience store warmer, possibly for several days, and couldn’t wait to get back home. She’d endure anything for this baby, though, anything at all, and it wasn’t too bad smothered in ketchup and mustard.

“Do you think you’ll be sick like this all the time?”

She glared at Candace over the bun.

“Sorry!”

“I can handle being sick. God knows I’ve had enough practice.”

Candace’s brow furrowed and she picked at her crackers in silence for a while before they climbed back into the car.

Leah said a silent prayer to make it all the way back to Cody without having to yak. As they rounded the final curve before crossing in to the city limits, she recognized the sparkling green water of the reservoir even before the dam itself came fully into view. Candace’s foot came up off the accelerator and Leah felt the car slow. “Do you want to stop?” she asked, nodding at the turn off to the dam.

Leah sighed and shook her head because it was late and Candace was probably tired from driving. “No. Thanks, but no. Let’s just go home.” She gazed out the window anyway, at the one place that always made her feel calm and secure. But somehow Leah doubted even the sturdiness of the concrete Buffalo Bill Dam would make her feel as though she was standing on solid ground.

They passed the museum and it hardly seemed as though it was worth it to have taken the day off. A day of making change and leading the occasional tour would’ve been a walk in the park compared to driving most of the day only to be called a gold-digging whore and having to slink back home with her tail between her legs.

At the apartment, they finished the takeout pizza from the fridge, which wasn’t nearly as good as that woman Sofia’s cookies and lemonade. Leah didn’t feel like eating much anyway. After two bites her stomach rolled again. She could do without the morning sickness, which seemed to happen any time of the day or night. All she wanted to do was go to sleep and put Austin Barlow out of her mind entirely.

She crawled into bed in her tiny apartment and closed her eyes, doing her best not to think about the enormous log cabin nestled in the foothills of the Tetons hundreds of miles away, or the ruby red lips that had once sweet talked her into being naughty in an elevator and then called her a whore for her trouble. She willed herself to sleep so she didn’t have to think anymore at all.

‡

A
ustin didn’t wake
so much as just rise out of bed. He hadn’t slept a minute the entire night, replaying their conversation in his head over and over. He’d played too many hands over the years, and his luck had made him cocky and overconfident. The ability to predict a storm had failed him this time. He hadn’t seen this one coming, and it was one hell of a sidewinder.

He packed quickly but with purpose. He wasn’t sure what he’d need, or how long he’d be away, but he shoved in some clothes and basic necessities. At the last minute, he picked up his checkbook, but he didn’t like the way it felt in his hands—cold, impersonal. He stuffed it way down into the bottom of the duffel bag where he could forget it was there.

The drive took too long, because he was impatient. He risked a ticket, practically flooring it through Yellowstone where park rangers were more plentiful than state troopers on other highways. Luck was with him, once again, and he made it to Cody just after noon. He’d been here before, but didn’t know his way around. She’d said her name was Pierce and he was standing in front of the door of the only Leah Pierce in Cody, Wyoming, according to the internet, an apartment in a rundown part of town.

He recognized the car in the parking lot, at least, so he knew he was in the right place. Standing here now, about to talk to her again seemed daunting. He didn’t know what to say but he was certain he’d fuck it all up, no matter what.

He took a deep breath and raised his arm but beside him, another door opened. A woman shuffled out, looked at him, and visibly recoiled. His appearance probably didn’t help. He hadn’t shaved again in weeks, had skipped it this morning in favor of getting on the road. He probably looked crazy. Or homeless. He reached out and rapped briskly on Leah’s door, so the woman wouldn’t mistake him for a burglar or a stalker and call the police. He wasn’t ready though, not by a long shot, and when the door swung wide he felt awkward and stupid looming on the stoop.

It was Candace who opened the door and it was a bit of a relief. A five, maybe ten second reprieve before he had to do some fast talking about his earlier behavior. The young woman wasn’t happy to see him and he jammed his hands in his pockets, feeling like a heel. “Can I see her?” he asked quietly.

“So you can call her a whore again?”

“I didn’t…I didn’t
say
that.”

Candace stared at him.

Austin sighed. “Okay, I didn’t
mean
that.”

“You can’t see her.”

He started. “Why not? Is there something wrong? Is she okay? Is she—?”

“Oh, you care now?”

Austin judged by her sarcasm that Leah was most likely fine and relaxed a bit. “Come on, cut me some slack, Candace. You two showed up, out of the blue, and hit me with a sledgehammer. I didn’t handle it well. I admit it. I’m sorry. But I’m here now, and I want to at least talk.”

The brunette frowned. “I don’t think she’ll want to see you.”

He paused to consider this. He didn’t want to say that he still wasn’t totally sure she was pregnant, or that it was his baby if she was. But he couldn’t discount his own behavior that night and he owed it to Leah and himself to find out the truth either way.

“We need to talk,” he told Candace. “There’s a lot we’re going to have to hash out.”

The woman hesitated, considering his words, then nodded and stepped back from the door. “Just wait here,” she told him. “I’ll get her. Though I can’t promise anything.”

“I appreciate it,” he replied, and he did. He also appreciated Candace’s willingness to protect her friend. Everyone needed at least one friend like that.

Candace set off down the short hallway and he heard the click of a door and assumed it was a bedroom. Glancing around, he took in the shabby, spare furniture. One used couch, one television that looked nearly as old as his grandfather’s transistor radio, a poorly shellacked dining room table with only three chairs around it, all mismatched. It was garage sale stuff, not that that was a bad thing. But he grimaced at the thought of where she’d put a crib (or if she could even afford one.)

He heard muffled arguing from behind the bedroom door and for a moment he thought Candace had been right, that Leah would refuse to see him. Served him right, he supposed, but they had a baby to think about—maybe.

Finally the door flung open and an angry (and tired looking) Leah stormed out. The look she was giving him could’ve melted steel. “What do you want?” she snapped. “Just going home wasn’t good enough for you? You want to chase me out of the state now, too? How far away is good enough? Colorado? Texas? Mexico? Should I cross an ocean?”