The Bad Boy's Baby (Hope Springs) (11 page)

“I need to talk to you about something…” The thought of where he needed to steer the conversation was enough to put a dent in the happy vibe, and he hated to ruin the easy mood. So he decided to put it off a little while longer and change the path of the conversation to another subject he’d wanted to bring up. “Now that the weather’s turning warmer, I was thinking maybe we could take Zoey up to the lake and spend a day fishing. As soon as the lodge opens, I know things are going to get busy fast, but I thought a sort of practice run would be fun. What do you say?”

Emma twisted in his arms so that she was facing him. “You’ll help me carry the billion bags that taking Zoey anywhere requires?”

“What else would I do with all these muscles?” He flexed to add to the joke, and she giggled.

She leaned in, her lips mere inches away. “Sounds like a perfect way to spend a day.”

He closed the gap and kissed her again, and all of his past mistakes and bad memories pushed that much farther into the background.

Chapter Fifteen

The entire night seemed like one big dream, similar to the whimsical dates Emma had always envisioned back in high school. Carnival rides and music under the stars with a guy she was crazy about keeping her warm. This date had made up for all the ones she’d missed in her life, to the point that even the fact that she hadn’t gone on a single one in the past three years no longer felt like a big deal.

But as they exited the carnival grounds, she couldn’t help noticing the way women looked at Cam, their gazes lingering. One was so bold as to wink, even though Emma’s hand was in his, a clear sign they were together. At least she thought it was pretty clear.

She could read their expressions, too, looks that said,
Why is
he
with
her
?

The question echoed through her head, unwelcome and stirring up the self-esteem issues she thought she’d conquered years ago. If Zoey wasn’t in the picture, would he be with her?

Probably not. A sinking sensation went through her gut. In fact, he’d even brought Zoey up when he’d asked her to give him a chance, saying they owed it to their daughter. She understood, because she wanted the best for Zoey, too, but just once, she wanted to be wanted for her.

She thought of her parents, of all the fights where her father made it clear he would walk away if they didn’t have a daughter together. She’d sat in her room and promised herself that she’d never settle for such a conditional excuse for love. In the end, it hadn’t kept them together, either. It’d only driven a wedge between them, one filled with mean words that’d left all of them miserable, along with the issues that came with feeling unwanted and unloved.

Why am I thinking about this? It’s way too soon.
Like Cam had pointed out, she worried about hypothetical future problems before they even had a chance to happen.

At the same time, the beginning was when all that passion and having trouble keeping their hands off each other was supposed to happen.

She wanted intense kissing, and to run her hands down his whiskered face, down his body, but she wasn’t going to be the one to push the boundaries and make a fool of herself, even if just the thought of it sent a spike of desire through her.

Emma was fairly confident Cam enjoyed her company, but she couldn’t help but worry a little. Their kisses were sweet, with none of that passion from the night they’d first hooked up, when she’d been pretending to be someone else.

He did say I looked nice.

Yeah, nice, not hot. Not pretty.

Don’t start overanalyzing it, or you’ll ruin everything.

When Cam pulled open the passenger door of his truck for her, she forced a smile onto her face and climbed into the cab.

For most of the ride back, it was quiet. Not uncomfortably so, but clearly there was still a lot that she didn’t know about Cam. She knew he had a complicated relationship with his dad, and as intimidated as she was by Rod Brantley, she thought it was better to get it out in the open instead of having an awkward run-in in the middle of town.

She reached up and twisted a strand of hair around her finger. “I assume your dad’s probably heard about Zoey by now…?”

Cam’s hands tightened on the wheel. “It’s come up, yes. In fact, I need to talk to you about something, but I didn’t want to ruin the night.”

Maybe she should’ve kept her mouth closed on the subject. Why hadn’t she started with something simpler? Like favorite color? Or favorite food?

“Earlier this week, my dad did call and ask me when he could meet her. And today he called again and told me he understood you and I were still figuring things out, but he would love for the two of you to have Sunday dinner with us all tomorrow night. I realize it’s late notice, and I should’ve brought it up earlier. I’ve just been going back and forth on the whole thing, because I’m not sure I want to pull you and Zoey into the mess that is my screwed-up family.”

Emma swallowed. “I understand. And it’s not like I have a busy schedule.”

“You don’t have to check your calendar?” he asked, a hint of teasing in his voice.

“Well, of course I have to consult that. I’m just saying I
might
be able to pencil you in.” Which reminded her that she still needed to have a talk with Pete. He’d left soon after asking her out, so she hadn’t had the chance, and it was another awkward conversation she wasn’t looking forward to.

Let’s just focus on one awkward situation at a time…
“If you want Zoey and me to come, we can.” She was proud of how firm her voice had come out, considering everything inside her suddenly felt shaky.

Cam reached over and grabbed her hand. “Quinn offered to host at Mountain Ridge, so there’d be more room, as well as it being more neutral territory. The truth is, while I’m still figuring out my relationship with my dad, he was actually pretty cool about the whole Zoey thing. I thought he’d throw things I’d said to him back in my face, but all he said was he wanted to meet her.”

Emma wasn’t sure exactly what his version of “pretty cool” was, but she hoped Rod would save some of it for her. She supposed she’d never declare herself truly ready to meet Rod Brantley, not after keeping Zoey a secret for so long. But ready or not, it was a step they needed to cross eventually to avoid that whole awkward encounter situation that had led her to bring it up in the first place. “We’ll come to dinner and meet everyone, then.”

Cam lifted her hand and kissed the back of it. “Thanks. It’ll be fun for Ollie to meet her, too. I think he’s going to be thrilled about being an uncle.” He huffed a laugh. “As long as it doesn’t interfere with baseball.”

Emma nodded, her mind already formulating a game plan for the meeting. It was hardly the way she’d wanted to end the date, but again, she supposed her complicated life made it impossible to have normal dating rules.

At least with Cam by her side, she felt like she could take on anything, be it family dinner or heading into the mountains with a two-year-old who didn’t like to stay put.

…

Cam waited outside the lodge for Emma and Zoey while the buzz of conversation continued inside. The more space he and Dad gave each other, the more likely they’d still be getting along when Emma and Zoey arrived. The way Heath had forgiven Dad for everything was admirable, but Cam wasn’t so sure he could do the same.

He’d warned him to be nice to Emma, though, and as long as Dad did that, he’d at least suffer through the evening.

Dust kicked up on the road, and pretty soon the little gray car he’d repaired with enough new parts to practically make a new one pulled up in front of him. One look at Emma and he could see the apprehension written across her face. He took the porch steps a couple at a time and reached out for her as she climbed out of the car. He helped her to her feet and gave her hand a squeeze in an attempt to take away some of her worry.

When she smiled at him, though, he was the soothed one. Then his fears rose to the surface. Would she meet Dad and worry that he’d end up like him, the way he sometimes did? Would she look at him the same way if she knew all the things he’d done? Could a sweet, smart girl like her really want to take a chance on a guy like him?

Cam reached into the back of the car and unfastened Zoey, who’d fallen asleep in her seat—his daughter was probably one of the few things he had going for him with Emma, and he hoped to take that wiggle room and earn enough to deserve both of their affection.

His daughter was a little furnace, and he boosted her a few inches higher in one arm before wrapping the other around Emma’s waist. “Ready?”

“No,” she said, but then she started toward the entrance of the former B and B—they really needed to figure out if they should stick to calling it a lodge, or if they should call it a B and B still, or if…well, now he was stalling so he didn’t have to think of his two worlds colliding.

Thank goodness Quinn and Heath would be here to help dispel some of the tension.

Right before they got to the door, he spun around. Bracing one hand on the still-sleeping Zoey, he leaned down and kissed Emma, putting everything he could into it with the use of only one hand. She gasped, and he took advantage, sweeping his tongue in to meet hers.

She stared at him through half-lidded eyes, and he wished he’d taken the time to give her a proper kiss good-bye last night. He felt like Emma was constantly holding back, probably because of the way they’d first gotten together, and he didn’t want her to think he expected more. Not until she was ready.

“What was that for?” she asked.

“So you’ll remember how much you like being around me.”

“My, someone thinks highly of his kisses,” she said, but then she tipped onto her toes and gave him another. Then she turned toward the door, her chin notched higher, and she actually looked ready to go in now.

As soon as they stepped into the main room, the conversation died down. Dad’s gaze bounced from Cam to Emma to Zoey.

Dad stood, wiped his hands on his jeans, and then extended one to Emma. “Rod Brantley.”

“Emma Walker. Nice to meet you.”

Zoey stirred as the rest of the introductions were made—Emma already knew Quinn and Heath, of course, but she hadn’t officially met Oliver or Sheena.

“And this is Zoey,” Cam said, rubbing her back as she blinked at everyone.

When Dad moved closer and said hi, she dropped her head back on Cam’s shoulder.

“She fell asleep on the drive over,” Emma said. “She might need a few minutes to wake up.”

As if to prove her mom wrong, though, Zoey’s head popped up. “Puppy!”

Trigger, Heath’s little blue heeler, came bounding over, and Zoey wiggled to get down. She squatted, her bum all but hitting the floor, and wrapped her arms around the puppy, who went to licking her face. Both of them were way too happy about the situation, and it warmed Cam from the inside out.

Pretty soon, six adults and one eight-year-old boy were crouched around a puppy and a little girl with blond curly hair. Dad’s hand came down on Cam’s shoulder and he looked over at his father, waiting for some kind of criticism.

“I can’t believe I’m a grandpa,” he said. Most people probably wouldn’t have heard the catch in his voice or seen the awe in his eyes. Cam had thought Dad might be a bit brusque with Emma about not telling any of them about Zoey, or that he’d say something highly inappropriate to her. He’d also expected a jab about the lodge and his boys leaving him to run the shop alone, until they inevitably failed, and couldn’t she at least talk some sense into him if she was going to be around?

Never in a million years had he expected Dad to get emotional about having a granddaughter, and it made his own heart knot. One by one, they stood—they’d never outlast Zoey, who could squat for hours in that position. It was the kind of stance they used to break grown men in boot camp, but it seemed to be her home base.

Dad turned to Emma, and despite the recent warm fuzzies, Cam still took her hand, wanting her to have his if she needed something to hold on to.

“So, she’s two?”

Emma let out a shallow exhale and nodded. “Yes, sir.”

“Oh, no need for this ‘sir’ business,” Dad said, swiping a hand through the air. “Please call me Rod. After all, we’re family now—even if you and my son don’t work out.”

Well, there was the bluntness, but at least he hadn’t edged it with animosity. As far as Rod Brantley went, that was a warm welcome.

Cam slipped his fingers between Emma’s, feeling the need to tighten his hold on her, and gave her hand another squeeze. She squeezed back, her touch bringing the same calm it did last night, and making him think that despite the odds and their unconventional start, maybe they actually had a shot at making this work.

Chapter Sixteen

Two weeks went by, in which the last cabins took shape, even their interiors all but finished.

During that time, Cam often came over to have dinner with her and Zoey and to help with bedtime. The three of them had even gone to eat at the diner one night, which had stirred up plenty of talk.

Since then, people had stopped Emma on the sidewalk, or in the grocery store, or even when she was pumping gas and stressing about how late she was running, to ask what was going on with her and Cam Brantley. Mrs. Branson had gone so far as to warn her that from what she’d heard, “that Brantley boy” had been quite the hoodlum in high school, and she was pretty sure her stolen garden gnomes were his doing. She’d added that if Emma found out where they were, could she let her know, because she hadn’t been able to find any just like them since.

As if Cam actually had some secret place where he stashed stolen garden gnomes.

Cam mentioned that he’d been told how sweet Emma was on more than one occasion, and a couple of women wanted clarification on if he was truly Zoey’s father, like they suspected he and Emma were playing some big prank on everyone. Then, after he’d confirmed that he was, they’d asked him why he’d taken so long to make things right.

So basically, the town was trying to get involved, just like she’d worried they would. She’d learned to simply smile and change the subject when the prying started. Mostly because it was none of their business, but the truth was, she wasn’t sure exactly what was going on. This past month had been a lot of fun, and during last weekend’s fishing excursion with Zoey, she’d laughed more than she ever had before.

Every time Cam cast his line, Zoey would walk over next to him and throw rocks in the water, which kept the fish far, far away—he’d been using salmon eggs, anyway, and in her experience, the fish in the reservoir always turned their noses up at them. Despite both of their attempts to keep Zoey from venturing past the shoreline, their daughter was wet and muddy about an hour after they reached the reservoir.

More than anything, it felt like playing family, but Emma supposed they weren’t playing. They
were
a family, even if a little unconventional and still trying to figure it out.

But there was a difference between working side by side and raising a child together, and having the kind of relationship she wanted, one with fireworks and passion.

To be fair, nothing got in the way of intimacy like a two-year-old—the last couple of times Cam had been over, Zoey had started crying right as they’d settled onto the couch to catch their breath from the day, obliterating the chance to see if kissing would turn into a little more.

But Emma’s worries from the night of their first and only date sans Zoey hadn’t completely gone away. More than once, after Cam had left with nothing more than a kiss good night, she’d heard Ricky’s voice in her head:
It’s one thing to have a boring job that you talk about nonstop, but it’s another when the thought of having sex with you makes me yawn. I just can’t make it work anymore.

He’d said it like the entire relationship had been a chore. With bedtime rituals, toddler tantrums, and having to pack two extra bags for a simple fishing trip, how could being with her not feel a little bit like a chore?

The knock on the door jerked Emma back into the present. She set aside her laptop, which had an application to an architecture firm in Casper on the screen, and answered the door.

“Everything okay?” she asked when Grandma Bev stood on the porch, the light illuminating her bright red coat and matching lipstick.

Grandma stepped inside. “For the record, I prefer more of a conventional greeting. Like, ‘Hello, dear Grandma. It’s so nice to see you.’”

“How about, ‘Hello, Grandma who’s hell-bent on giving me a heart attack. I’m so glad you took time out of your busy social life to stop by’?”

Grandma rolled her eyes, but a smile tugged on the corners of her mouth. “That’ll do.” She looked around, doing a wide sweep of the living room and kitchen. “That fella isn’t here?”

“Not tonight.”

“How do I always manage to miss him?”

Because apparently I’m luckier than I thought.
Eventually they’d have to meet, of course, but since Grandma Bev would most likely go into interrogator mode the second after names were exchanged, Emma wanted to put it off a little longer. Until she felt sure enough about the relationship that she could confidently answer that she did know exactly where it was going.

The worries that’d occupied her mind a minute ago tried to rise up and make her wonder if they’d actually get to that place before the nosy townsfolk and family obligations got too much for Cam.

But then she reminded herself how good he’d been about everything. The image of him attempting to fix Zoey’s ponytail after it’d fallen out the other night popped into her head. In typical Zoey fashion, something as little as an undone hairdo could be treated like the end of the world, and when Emma’s hands were occupied with making dinner, Cam had jumped in to help.

When she’d seen that, she’d told herself she was stupid for caring about anything else when he was such a good father.

Thinking about the way that ponytail had stuck straight up, giving their daughter more of an antenna than a hairstyle, made her bite back a laugh.

Grandma perched on the edge of the couch. “I just wanted to let you know that Vera Mae officially put her house up for sale today. A moving truck is coming at the end of the month, and then she’ll be living with me. So to reiterate, there’s no reason to use me as an excuse anymore, and I hope you’ve been moving forward with your plans instead of waiting around and twiddling your thumbs.”

“Gee, I really miss those thumb-twiddling days,” Emma joked. “They were so much fun, but they’re definitely hard to find after having a kid.”

Grandma Bev shot her a look that made it clear she didn’t consider this a joking matter.

Truthfully, Emma had put off filling out applications, but the Mountain Ridge job would be done soon, and she’d promised herself—and Grandma Bev—that she was going to move forward with her career.

That was before things happened with Cam, though, which was why she’d started daydreaming about him after she’d reached the end of the application instead of actually sending it.

But she didn’t dare say that, or she’d be accused of turning into her mother, and neither one of them wanted that. So she picked up her laptop and swiveled the screen to face Grandma. “I was just applying to this firm in Casper, actually. The city’s currently experiencing an influx in their population, which means they have a need for more housing, and I figured it’d be the best place to start.”

A mix of apprehension and guilt rose up at the thought of taking a job in Casper, because now there was more to it than leaving Grandma behind.

There’s no harm in filling it out. And it’s only a little over an hour’s drive from here, which isn’t bad.

Before she could change her mind, she hit send and promised herself she’d fill out another one tomorrow night.