Tiny Dancer [Divine Creek Ranch 13] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (36 page)

Heath chuckled and held up his hands. “I’ll treat her like the little darlin’ that she is. But I’m adjusting your seat all the way back so don’t get bent out of shape when you climb into it later.” As tall as Heath was, she knew he’d need every inch of available leg room.

He let Cody know where they were going and then escorted her out to the car. “I know it’s none of my business, but do you want to talk about what’s bothering you?”
Yup, Heath’s sixth sense is definitely pinging on me.
But she couldn’t talk with him about this. Not yet.

“No. I’ll be fine.”

He started the car, and she directed him to Cheaver’s Western Wear in Divine. She had a meeting with Rosemary Garner about some cross-promotional efforts with the store and The Twisted Bull and Chantilly’s. While he drove, she picked her phone up, and checked the call history. There were calls from Ben’s and Quinten’s cell phone numbers. There were also text messages from both of them. She put her head back against the headrest and closed her eyes.

I should be grateful. Affording this baby isn’t the problem. Whether I have to work or not isn’t the problem. Whether I can keep this car or not isn’t the problem. Can I handle a baby in my life right now?
That’s
the problem.

Her phone vibrated in her hand.

She knew if she told Ben and Quinten she was pregnant, they’d do the stand-up thing, but in years to come, would they regret it? Or worse, would they resent her? They’d only been together a little over a month.

Her phone vibrated in her hand again, and she looked at the screen.

From Ben.
“Are you all right? What did the doctor say?”

From Quinten.
“Please let me know that you’re okay. I’m worried about you.”

Feeling guilty for making them worry but knowing she couldn’t have that conversation in the car with Heath right there, she text messaged them both back.

To Ben.
“I’m fine. I’ll call you in a bit. I’m in the car with Heath running an errand.”

To Quinten.
“Please don’t worry. I’m okay. I’m running an errand with Heath and will call you in a bit.”

Heath must’ve been able to tell she had a lot on her mind and kept mostly quiet on the drive back to Divine. The mild panicky feeling that had been stirring in her mind since leaving the doctor’s office was doing its best to swell into a full-blown panic attack. Her heart was like a jackhammer in her chest and her fingertips felt a little numb. She closed her eyes and took slow, shaky deep breaths.
You’re okay. You’re okay. You’re just fine. Stop shaking.

Out of the blue, she pictured her mother, in the moment she found out she was pregnant with Camilla. She’d still been in high school, same as her father. Had she been afraid? Had she known back then that Camilla’s father was unlikely to stay for the long haul? Had she been desperate for a solution and grasping at straws when Camilla’s father had offered to marry her against his parents’ wishes? What had it been like to marry him and know that she didn’t have an education or a job…or a leg to stand on? She’d probably felt trapped. Maybe even resentful toward Camilla.

Stop thinking about this! It’s not helping. The past is in the past.

She focused on her breathing again, trying to not let on to Heath that she was so upset. She imagined that the tension must’ve been rolling off of her in waves.

Right about the time the strongest of the panicky symptoms settled, her phone vibrated with a message from Quinten.
“What did the doctor say? Where are you? Can I come to you?”
Her heart lurched a little because she could sense his concern in wanting to come to her.

That message was quickly followed by one from Ben.
“What did the doctor tell you?”

She was torn. She didn’t want to tell them that she was pregnant in a text message, and she wasn’t ready to tell them because she didn’t know how she felt about being pregnant. So she did the cowardly thing and turned her phone off. She felt like a first-class bitch as she put the phone in her purse. It was awful to acknowledge that to herself, but it was better than focusing on the fear.

* * * *

As he pushed the shopping cart down the aisle, Quinten put his phone to his ear after dialing Ben’s number. “Did she call you back?” He put a bottle of ginger ale in the cart. “Ginger ale is good for nausea, right?” He was at the store picking up items that might help Camilla’s stomach to settle.

“No, she hasn’t.” It was just one phrase, but Ben’s concern was obvious in his tone. “Her text message said she was running an errand with Heath. And I don’t know about the ginger ale. I guess it is.”

All either of them had gotten was a simple text message reply back from her. No details. No news. He was beginning to worry. No. He was past the beginning stage and into full-blown worry. What if she became ill again?

“You gonna call Heath?”

Ben let out a long breath. “No. I think she’d appreciate it if we gave her some time. She was pretty upset this morning.”

“Did she say where she was going?”

“No. She didn’t tell you?”

“No. I’m glad she took Heath with her.” Even though it was an uncharacteristic move for her. She generally preferred to go about her day without an escort. Quinten wondered again where she was headed.

He knew Heath was capable at his job. But he didn’t like having to trust a man who’d had feelings for her with her care in a sensitive situation like this. That was
his
job. Quinten knew Ben’s urge to track her down and make sure she was okay was just as great as his.

“Let’s give her some time before we go tracking her down. If she’s had big news—”

“If she’s pregnant, you mean.”

“If she is indeed pregnant, she’s probably in shock. Let’s give her a chance to get over that.”

“We told her that we’d be there for her no matter what.”

“I know we told her, but I’m not sure if she heard us, Quinten. Remember, she’s got some heavy-duty issues with her parents. I’m not sure if what we told her really registered.”

“That makes me worry
more
, not less, Ben.” His heart clenched. “What if she’s out there thinking that we’re going to be unhappy about a baby?” He didn’t want to think what might happen if that was the case.

“Don’t go getting all worked up, now. Just give her time. It’s eleven thirty. Let’s wait until after lunch. Then if we haven’t heard from her, we’ll call Heath. Damn it, I wish she’d let us go with her to the doctor’s office. I wish it was one of us with her right now.” His disgruntled tone let Quinten know he felt the same way about Heath being the guy with her at the moment. The territorial cavemen in both of them were stirring. Quinten took a deep breath as he ended the call and went in search of the saltine crackers for Camilla. He’d just keep busy until he heard something. Despite his worry for Camilla, a little kernel of hope was growing in his heart.

* * * *

Rosemary Garner cocked her head as she gazed at Camilla. “Are you feeling okay today, Camilla?”

Camilla sighed. “Honestly? I’m out of sorts. All the excitement with the club and restaurant coming together has me worn out, I guess.” She hated to lie to her friend. Rosemary had never been anything but kind and trustworthy in the time that she’d known her but Rosemary already had enough on her hands without dealing with Camilla’s worries too.

Rosemary rose from the conference room table and drew a paper cup from the dispenser at the water cooler, filled it, and brought it to Camilla. She stroked her burgeoning baby bump and glanced at Heath standing out in the hall.

“So…he’s your bodyguard?” she whispered. Camilla nodded and chuckled when Rosemary made a comical face and replied, “Don’t let my men know I said it, but he’s a freaking-
hot
bodyguard too. Those eyes…
hubba hubba
.”

Camilla sipped at her water and nodded, even managed a giggle. “Heath’s an old friend. He wanted to drive me today because he was concerned about me.”

“I know it drives us crazy, but it does come naturally to these men to be so protective. Back to the reason for your visit, I’ll have the proofs for the ads back to you just as soon as the printer sends them to me. We’re really excited to be doing some cross-promo with The Twisted Bull and Chantilly’s. With rodeo season coming up, you’ll be very busy, I’m sure.”

“I certainly hope so.” The thought of dealing with the rodeo just increased her exhaustion and nausea.
What a weenie. Not but a few weeks pregnant and already you’re tapping out.
Since it was just the two of them, Camilla asked, “How are you doing these days?”

Rosemary looked like the cat that got into the cream as she eased back into her chair and smoothed the fabric of her maternity top over her belly. “I can’t complain. I’m seven months along. The baby is fine, and everything has gone smoothly. I’m here in a strictly advisory capacity, or so my men tell me.”

“And that’s going all right? Just being here on a limited basis?”

Rosemary smiled, looking satisfied. “I can recall a time when I was sure this place would fall down around us if I wasn’t here during every operational hour and more besides. I felt it was my duty, since this was my family’s store. But I’ve come to understand—” Rosemary giggled and put her hand to her belly with a smile. “
Oh
, Camilla, you
have
to feel this!” She placed Camilla’s hand on her belly and Camilla gasped in awe when the baby rolled and she felt what must’ve been a little elbow or heel rub right across her palm. She sat there stunned, waiting for it to happen again. When it did, Rosemary smiled as she stroked her shifting abdomen with a loving tenderness that took Camilla’s breath away.

Once again, her mother came to mind. Had a moment like that one made her smile, or had it made her feel even more helpless? She blinked rapidly to dispel the tears forming in her eyes. She felt like she was being torn in two emotionally.

“What was I saying? Oh yeah. There are more important things in life than the store. This baby. And Wes and Evan. They’re so overprotective.” She rolled her eyes, looking a combination of mildly amused and slightly disgusted. “You’d think I was the only woman to ever get pregnant.”

A deep, familiar voice from the doorway said, “Far as we’re concerned, you are, Rosie.” Camilla smiled when she looked over and saw Evan Garner leaning against the doorframe. He grinned at her and said, “Hey there, Camilla. How’re you doing?”

Camilla rose from the chair, fighting down nausea and light-headedness. She really should’ve stopped earlier in the day to eat something. “I’m just fine, Evan.” She returned his hug and then walked with them out into the hallway and back out into the main store showroom area. Heath walked with them, after nodding and shaking hands with Evan, who seemed to approve of Camilla having a bodyguard.

Camilla watched the care Evan took with Rosemary, and the words Ben and Quinten had spoken to her that morning came to mind as she excused herself briefly to use the restroom. She’d been so freaked out by the whole experience that it’d all become muddled together. But she remembered both of them had told her that they’d be there for her,
no matter what
. She also remembered the tender way they’d touched her and taken care of her after she’d gotten sick. The memory of the night before, spent alone with Ben, came to her, and the words he’d spoken. “
I want what my parents never fully enjoyed.
”

She wanted that too. As she leaned against the bathroom counter and looked at her pale face in the mirror, she recalled the brokenness she’d seen in her mother’s eyes when she’d told her that her daddy had gone away, and that he’d probably not come back. Her mother had cried and apologized, until Camilla had begged her to not cry anymore.

From that day forward, Camilla had prayed for her father to return to them. She’d begged God for an end to her mother’s pain. The low-paying job her mother had managed to find had slowly sucked even more of the life out of her.

Camilla had taken odd jobs and babysat their neighbors’ kids to help provide for the two of them. All her friends spent their allowances and babysitting money on frivolous things, while she’d stood in the grocery store aisles trying to figure out which would last longer, a box of Cheerios or a jar of peanut butter.

She’d thought back then that was the low point of her life. She’d been wrong about that.
So wrong
. The worst day had been the one on which she’d been called to the school office and had faced the news delivered by a police officer that her mother had overdosed on painkillers.

In her shock, it hadn’t registered when they’d told her that they’d contacted her father and he’d said he would come as soon as he could to collect her. He’d arrived—
three days later
—looking put out and embarrassed by the whole situation. And then he’d done exactly what he’d done before. He’d left her.

No!

She’d lived through that terrible time in her life. No matter what happened, there was no way in hell the child she carried was ever going to live like that.

Ben’s tone echoed in her memory from that morning. “
You’re going to have your dream even if it kills me and Quinten in the process.
”