The Last American Cowboy (9 page)

* * * * *

Lily was already asleep by the time we arrived at Blake’s house. He carried her into the house and up the stairs and put her gently down on the bed.

“Would you mind if I slept with her just in case she wakes up and wonders where she is?”

“Sure, and do you want to go to bed right now, too?”

“Would you be upset if I did?”

Blake shook his head. “Having a baby probably makes you tired, right?”

I put my hand over his mouth and signaled for him not to say anything about the baby in case Lily wasn’t quite all the way asleep yet.

He put his hand on my tummy, and I held it there.

“I’m excited about the news. I really am,” he mouthed to me.

* * * * *

When I woke up the next morning, I threw up straightaway. Poor Lily looked like she was worried something was wrong with her mommy. I smiled when she searched through our bags to find a Band-Aid and put it on my arm.

I needed to make another mad dash to the bathroom and heaved over the toilet for the next fifteen minutes. It’d been the same with Lily, and it had lasted well into my second trimester. Fun times ahead for me.

I sat myself down and rested against the bath, welcoming its coolness on my back.

“Hey, Fiona, you okay in there?” Blake called through the door.

“Yep, and the door’s open if you want to come in.”

He stepped inside and rushed over to me. “You want me to call the doctor? You look pale.”

I took hold of his hand. “Morning sickness, that’s all. I’ll be fine by 10 a.m. Well, at least I was when I was pregnant with Lily.”

He ran a washcloth under the water, sat beside me, and pressed it over my mouth and head.

“My dad and Jenine are cooking breakfast, which I’m sure doesn’t interest you right now, but Lily is probably hungry. After that, if it’s okay with you, they want to show her the horses, maybe let her feed and brush one.”

“I don’t know if she’s ever seen one other than in her storybooks.”

* * * * *

Blake senior made a big fuss of Lily as soon as he set eyes upon her. She seemed to take to him immediately and, when they and Jenine headed out to the stables, she was already holding his hand.

“He’s always had a way with the ladies,” said Blake, watching them walk away.

“You do, too. Well, at least one lady,” I said, tugging on his shirt.

He turned around and held me. “Okay, we’re all alone, and it’s time for us to talk about our future. I’ve been practicing all night, but I’m so nervous I’ll just have to come out with it. I know you might not be in love with me but, if I’m honest, I guess I fell for you the moment I set eyes on you. Yeah, I wanted to get into your panties on day one, but now it’s all about getting into your heart.”

“Blake, I fell in love with you when you came to spend the weekend with us.”

“Baby, it makes me so happy to hear you say that. So I guess all I have to say is, city girl, will you be this country boy’s wife?”

That took me by surprise.

“You haven’t thought this through. Where will we live?”

“Here, of course. What did you think, we’d be husband and wife miles apart?”

“But Lily?”

He put his hand over my mouth. “I know you love that little girl with all your heart, and that’s one of the things I love about you but, one day, she’ll be all grown up. She’ll fall in love, too, and be gone with a family of her own, and where will that leave you? A lonely, old lady, that’s what.”

He was right. He was so damn right. I closed my eyes.

“The school here is great and, if she needs extra help, I’ll get her a private tutor. She’ll live like a princess, and I’ll be the best dad a man can be. My dad’s introducing her to her very own pony right this minute.”

I put my hand over my mouth. Not only had I struck gold, but my little girl had, too.

“He shouldn’t have,” I said.

“He wants you and her to be happy. And it’s also his way of thanking you for giving him what he’s always wanted.”

“It wasn’t just me,” I said.

“Yeah, but you’re carrying this baby for nine months, and that makes you the special one in this team. So what about it, city girl?”

“How can I say no?”

Epilogue

I gripped Blake’s hand as I gave another push. The baby was two weeks overdue, and the midwife had told me it was probably a lazy male and for Blake and I to have sex to get things moving. We had and, four hours later, I’d had my first contraction. An hour later, my water had broken. The labor had progressed quickly, which was great for me, because I’d opted for a home birth. Blake hadn’t left my side, rubbing my back and giving me a foot massage when the pain became too much for me. His father and Jenine were keeping Lily entertained downstairs. At first, she hadn’t been thrilled about having a sibling but now couldn’t wait to be a big sister.

I gave another push as Blake held my hand. I had a feeling it was going to be a son for me this time around. I put my head back and rested, hoping it would be over soon as I was getting tired, and my hair clung to my head like I’d been caught in a sudden downpour.

“One more push should do it,” said the midwife.

“You ready to be a dad?” I asked Blake.

“Ready and waiting, so make this one a good push.”

I lifted my legs, pushed with every bit of energy I had left, and felt the baby slip from my body.

It was over. I rested my back on the pillow, taking a deep breath as the midwife placed the baby on my belly. I glanced down, seeing I’d been right. Blake and I were now the parents of a little boy.

I reached down and wiped away some blood from his scalp. He was beautiful, just like my Lily. I glanced up to see tears falling down Blake’s face as he held his son’s tiny hand.

“Well, Mr. Whelan, what do you think?”

“I’m lost for words, Mrs. Whelan.”

I said a silent thank you to Bob for handing me the assignment that had changed my life.

The End

Author Bio

Vanessa Devereaux writes both erotica and erotic romances. She’s the author of The Brazen Ladies Trilogy, The Man Next Door, Mistaken Identity, and One Night With You as well as the Fictionwise bestseller Who’s The Boss? Her upcoming titles include another trilogy called Just for Your Pleasure. When she’s not writing, she’s teaching workshops, cooking, or gardening. Check out her Web site at:

www.vanessadevereaux.com