The Cowgirl's Little Secret(28)

Cash's upper lip curled into a snarl. "Some of the kids thought they were our parents."

Cord stared at his brother, his gaze thoughtful as he considered where Cash's sudden vehemence came from. "At least they were there, bud. Our old man never made time for us in any way, shape or form." As Cord watched, an unidentified emotion flickered across Cash's face. It took a few moments for him to figure it out. "He wasn't there for us, either. None of us. He couldn't be bothered. Unless he was telling one of us what to do."

"Yeah, whatever." Cash kicked the bag again and then stared at him. "So what are you going to do about it?"

"About the old man?"

"No. About your own son."

Cord reached down and snagged a Tonka truck. CJ would like it. Tucking it under his arm, he brushed past Cash but paused at the door.

"I'm going to take care of him. Whatever it takes."





Seventeen

Jolie ignored the restaurant's bustle as she pushed the food on her plate around with her fork. She wasn't hungry-hadn't been since her blowup with Cord after Halloween. She'd somehow managed to get through Thanksgiving, but since then there'd been another fight about CJ's birthday. She'd refused to let him go with Cord, though she'd allowed Cord to talk to her son, and had given CJ the presents Cord dropped by. Despite her insistence she didn't want to talk to him, Cord called. Often. And like an idiot, she answered. He pushed to spend more and more time with CJ. And with her.

Christmas was two weeks away and her life was careening out of control. She didn't know how to avoid the train wreck. Glancing up, she found her father staring at her.

"He's not good enough for you."

She just barely resisted the urge to sigh. "Dad, please."

"You deserve better, Jolene. You deserve a man who will put you and CJ first. A man who will fight for you. Cordell Barron is not that man."

"People change."

"Not that much."

"You don't know him, Dad."

"I know him better than you do, baby girl."

She stared at her father, doing her best to decipher the expression on his face. There was more to all of this-especially his bragging about knowing Cord well-than he was letting on. "What's that supposed to mean?"

He just looked enigmatic, cutting and eating his steak as though she hadn't asked the question. She seethed in silence, following his example. She'd watched him play this game all her life and she'd learned to play with the big boys. Using her father's tactics got her through college, and then through the admissions process for nursing school. Her clinicals. Her boards. And she'd used them when she insisted she was moving to Houston to have her baby.

"Why are you defending him?"

Opening her mouth to refute, she snapped her jaw shut before speaking. Her dad was right. She'd just defended Cord. The man she was mad at. The man who wanted to twist her world into Gordian knots. She'd had it up to her chinny-chin-chin with alpha men, including her father. But there was only one man who captured her thoughts, held them and made her do and say things totally against the grain. Cord Barron. Damn him.

A tense détente continued until Rand finished his dinner. She'd still barely touched hers. Her stomach roiled with tension. Their waitress cleared their plates, brought dessert Jolie hadn't ordered and filled her coffee cup. She added two creamers and an overflowing teaspoon of real sugar. Ignoring the crème brûlée, she sipped her coffee, watching her dad over the rim of the cup.

"Eat your dessert, Jolene. It's your favorite."

Huh. He'd broken the silence first. Interesting. She was even more curious about his motivation for this tête-à-tête dinner as a result. Indulging him, she spooned a bit of the creamy concoction.                       
       
           



       

"I'm not a little girl anymore, Dad. You can't divert my attention with treats." She laughed and almost choked. "Or ponies."

Rand chuckled at the memory. "Pony. Singular. And I'm not the one who decided to braid his tail with ribbons."

She smiled fondly, savored another creamy bite and then plastered a serious look on her face. "You should try being honest with me, Dad."

"I am, sugarplum."

"Ugh. First 'baby girl.' Now 'sugarplum.' 'Princess' can't be far behind. Good grief, Dad. When are you going to treat me like an adult?" She wagged her finger. "Do not tell me-" She inhaled, and in a reasonable facsimile of her father's voice said, "When you act like an adult."

"Jolene, you don't even know why he broke up with you."

"Want to bet?" She gloated a little over her father's expression. She'd certainly caught him off guard.

"Why don't you tell me the Barron version?"

So she did. She spoke of wanting Cord all through high school. She told him how she'd tried to seduce him at that ill-fated frat party and how Cord had been a perfect gentleman. She admitted to sneaking around behind everyone's backs.

"You were devastated when he broke up with you."

"Yeah, Dad, I was. I loved him. With my whole heart. I was nineteen and I'd given him my virginity." She didn't laugh when her dad blushed, and then stewed a little. "Jeez, Dad. I was, like, the only virgin in my graduating class. And that wasn't for a lack of trying on the boys' part. It's because none of those high school boys held a candle to Cordell Barron."

She finished off the custard and pushed the dish away. "He didn't tell me anything that night. He walked into my room, said, 'It's over' and walked right back out. When he found out about CJ, we talked. Cyrus Barron, that old bastard. Cord left me because his father didn't give him any choice."

"That's bull."

"No, Dad. It's not. You know that evil old man. He laid things out to Cord. Showed him what he could have right before jerking the rug out from under him. He was young. So was I."

Rand attempted to interrupt, but she held up a warning finger to stay him. "Let me finish. You asked what I know and believe. I'm telling you." She sipped her coffee and regrouped her thoughts, even though coffee wasn't what she wanted at the moment. What she really wanted was a good stiff drink. But she'd met her dad at the restaurant and was driving, so coffee would have to suffice.

"St. Paddy's Day. I was out with the girls celebrating passing our boards. And there he was at Hannigan's, with Cooper and some of the guys. I planned to seduce him, Dad. And then get up and walk away, leaving him like he left me. Only we were both so drunk birth control was the last thing on my mind."

She didn't get the rise she intended. Instead, he studied her for a long moment before speaking. "Interesting. That's pretty much the same story he told me when I asked him. Unusual for a man like him to admit a weakness."

Jolie didn't breathe for a moment and then sputtered, "You've talked to him?"

"I had a talk with him one day when I picked up CJ at the ranch." His gaze arrowed in on her. "What was his excuse for leaving you pregnant with my grandson?"

"That's all on me, Daddy." She scrubbed at her forehead with the heels of her hands, but the action did little to alleviate the headache blooming there. She couldn't meet his gaze for a long moment. "You know he didn't walk away when I was pregnant. I never told him."

Rand's expression never changed. Jolie caught no flicker of his thoughts revealed on his face or in his eyes. He simply stared, mouth grim, eyes half-hooded by his lids. When he finally spoke, his words tore at her nerves like a cheese grater.

"I raised you better than that. I didn't agree with you at the time, and look what's happened by keeping that secret." He leaned back and folded his arms across his chest. "The boy might have surprised us both. I know the man has."                       
       
           



       

Before she could retort, her cell rang. She would have ignored it, but it was her home number. Jolie answered and Mrs. Corcoran's voice spilled out before she could even say hello.

"You have to come home. You have to come right now." The nanny's words ran together.

"Mrs. C? What's wrong?" Jumping to her feet, Jolie snatched her purse and jacket and headed for the exit. Rand tossed money on the table and followed at her heels. He didn't question her, but steered her to his car and handed her into the passenger seat. Jolie stayed on the phone, listening to Mrs. Corcoran. Fear prickled across her skin, with anger hot on its heels. Her voice tight with emotion, she kept up a running commentary so her father could catch up.

"It's CJ. Some men came to the door. They have papers. Mrs. C is too upset to make sense of them. They're taking CJ. One took him upstairs to get some clothes and his backpack. Mrs. C says he's terrified and crying." Then she put the call on speaker.

She shivered as her father reached across the console and patted her knee. "We'll get to the bottom of this."

Jolie knew he meant to reassure her, but it wasn't helping. What was going on? "Mrs. C? Mrs. C! I want to talk to whoever's in charge."