Claiming The Cowgirl's Baby. Silver James
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Three
Pippa considered the empty space beside her on the bed. The spot was cold so Kade had likely been gone for some time. She couldn’t decide which was more awkward—waking up to the man she’d made love to for the first time, or waking up to his absence. Their relationship had changed—obviously—but for better or worse?
She listened but caught no sounds. Pushing off the covers, she rolled out of bed and stood, waiting to see if her head was going to cooperate this morning. For the first time in over a week, she had no vestiges of a headache lurking. Excellent. She grabbed her clothes and scuttled into the bathroom. She freshened up, using her finger for a toothbrush, dressed and headed toward the main part of the house. Which was empty. There was no sign of Kade but for a pot of hot coffee and a tented piece of paper propped up in front of it.
Opening cabinet doors until she found a mug, she poured a cup, rummaged for milk and sugar, fixed her coffee just the way she liked it and settled at the breakfast bar with Kade’s note in front of her. Pippa swallowed a few sips while working up her nerve to read it.
“You’re a big chicken,” she chided herself out loud. And she was. The fact that he hadn’t stuck around to face her the morning after—and they were in his house—didn’t bode well for their relationship to continue. If he was blowing her off, she’d have to figure out a way to salvage things. She still needed his expertise to get Camp Courage up and running.
Pippa stalled another couple of minutes while she fixed a second cup. Finally unable to put off the inevitable any longer, she opened the note.
Morning, Pip. You were sleeping sound so I didn’t wake you. I have some work this morning and need the early start. I left coffee. Hope it’s not too strong by the time you get up. Talk to you soon. KW
Well, alrighty then. Pippa had no idea what to think. It wasn’t a Dear Jane letter. Not exactly. But it wasn’t a declaration of undying love, either. Not that she really expected such a thing. She just wanted a chance to explore their relationship—especially after last night. Her whole body heated just thinking about it. He was... Her brain short-circuited and she puffed out a deeply feminine sigh of appreciation. He had real muscles and his hands were work-roughened. And his...oh yeah, his was something to behold. And enjoy. She thought about splashing cold water in her face then glanced at the paper on the breakfast bar.
She reread the note. He’d called her Pip. Which is what her best friend called her. Plus, it sounded like what a guy might call his best friend’s little sister. While Pippa might be an only child, her best friend, Carrie Longford, had two older brothers. Carrie had bemoaned the guy code loudly and often. Guys didn’t date their friend’s sisters. Nor did they date their sister’s friend. Good thing Pippa had never been attracted to Carrie’s brothers. But where did that leave her with Kade? She wasn’t in the sister zone. Was his reticence due to her friendship with Chase and Cash? He’d also written that he’d talk to her soon. What did that mean? She obviously needed her BFF’s advice.
She finished her coffee, rinsed out the mug and put it in the dishwasher. Her stomach rumbled from hunger. She also hadn’t mentioned she was on birth control in the heat of the moment, nor had he brought up the subject. Wondering if she should wait until he came back so they could talk, she stared out the window. Movement at the ranch office building drew her attention. Uh-oh. A black SUV was disgorging tall, handsome men. Four of them. The only Barron missing was Clay.
Yikes! She had to get out of here. She could avoid driving by the office, though it involved a circuitous route. Kade’s truck was still parked in front of the house and she figured the brothers would be headed here next. She located her purse and keys, glanced around to make sure no other evidence of her presence remained and boogied outside. She twisted the lock on the door handle, hoping it would secure the door, and pulled it shut behind her.
Skulking to her car, she scrunched down behind the wheel, started the engine and eased away from Kade’s house. Taking the back road toward the houses where other ranch hands lived, she eventually circled around toward the big house, gained the driveway and rocketed down it. Pippa didn’t take a deep breath until she’d hit the section line road headed toward I-35. Then she started laughing. She was so ridiculous sometimes.
* * *
Kade sat on his horse. The small hill gave him a good view of the ranch buildings on the left and the grass range where a herd of Black Angus cattle grazed. He’d ridden out before dawn looking for some peace. He hadn’t found it. He took off his Stetson and turned his face toward the sun. Wind teased his hair, loosening a few strands from the cord he used to tie it back.
He loved this land. Every scrap of it—the river to the south, the scrubby trees and rocky hills, the sweeping grasslands. He could admit to himself that he’d once wanted his own spread but after all the years here at the Crown B, this was home and he was satisfied. Until now.
Cyrus Barron. The man had been a master manipulator and he’d led Kade like a lamb to slaughter. Land management? You’re the expert, Kade. Cattle breeding program for high-yield, Grade A beef on the hoof? I trust you, Kade. Want a “super horse” stud? Do whatever you need, Kade. And he’d fallen right into the old man’s nasty web. Everything Kade worked for had been done to further the Barrons’ brand. And he’d been proud of what he’d achieved.
Then the truth came out.
Shoving the hat back on his head, he judged the time by the height of the sun on the eastern horizon. Was Pippa awake yet? And man, wasn’t that another can of worms he needed to sort out. He shoved that problem to the back of his mind. At the moment, he didn’t have the time or energy to sort out his feelings for Pippa. But he worried last night had been a mistake. A big mistake.
Kade shifted in the saddle to ease the pressure in his jeans. Physically, last night had been amazing. Emotionally? He wasn’t ready to go there. He liked Pippa. She was funny and cute and smart and sexy and sweet. Very sweet. She came from money—lots of it—and was the type of woman a Barron would date. Which brought him right back into that mental box he’d been trying to escape. He was a Barron. According to Cyrus’s will. But he wasn’t. He was Kaden Waite, half Chickasaw son of Rose Waite, grandson of William and Ramona Waite. He was a cattleman. He worked with his hands. He did not wear an expensive suit and tie.
But he’d put down roots in this place and it could all be his. His horse nickered and pawed the ground with a front foot. Kade loosened his grip on the reins. He’d freaked and stormed out of Barron Tower—and wasn’t that one of his finest moments. Not. He shook his head, feeling rueful. His half brothers had risen to their feet, all of them talking to him at once as he’d lost his cool. Chance had blocked the door, tried to manage the situation. Kade scrubbed at his face as he remembered the scene. He’d threatened to coldcock Chance if he didn’t get out of the way.
Chance held him in that conference room just long enough to say a few things—things he didn’t want to hear. Take some time, Chance had said. Think things over. Kade heard the murmurs of agreement coming from the rest of the Barron brothers. Yeah, easy for them to say. They’d grown up as Barrons, knew who and what they were.
Since coming to work at the ranch, he’d walked a fine line between employee and friend with the five brothers. Looking back, he recalled the sideways glances and the hints. They’d suspected all along and he’d been... What? An idiot? Stupid? Clueless? Pretty much. He’d definitely been blind. He was still too angry to call his mother and too unsure to call his grandparents.
How could she not tell him? And why hadn’t she gone after the sonavagun for child support? She’d worked hard all his life, sometimes two and three jobs until her paintings started to sell. His grandparents had all but raised him. All that time his father—Kade spit on the ground. Cyrus Barron had money. Lots of it. And he’d known of the bastard son living in Davis, Oklahoma.
The cell phone in his shirt pocket pinged. Jerking it out, he read the text from Selena Diaz, the ranch secretary. The Barron brothers had descended like locusts on the office. When was he coming back? He hated texting and she knew it. Stewing over