Chapter 3

THREE

TULLY

I was exhausted and heartsore. Nervous to the point of numbness. And now I was angry enough to spit fire.

Lellie had been an angel on the plane. Thankfully, Orris had approved our travel on an executive jet, which meant we’d had plenty of space for her to move around and play, but the minute we’d landed, her patience had gone from limitless to hard-limited in about ten seconds flat.

My assistant at the firm had offered to come with me to help take care of Lellie, but I’d explained she was going through a “stranger danger” phase and would probably be more comfortable with just me.

Mistake number one.

Then, I’d arrived at the pre-arranged rental car and noticed there was no car seat. I’d lucked out, and a pleasant staffer at the tiny airstrip had offered to run into town to get one for me from a neighbor of hers. Once she’d arrived back and installed it for me, I’d gone straight to the nearest place that sold car seats so I could return the loaner.

Mistake number two.

Not only was the car seat twice as expensive as it would have been back in Dallas at Walmart, but the only place for miles around that sold them was the Mercantile, located right in the heart of some kind of street festival in Majestic. An overly chatty cashier inadvertently helped me out by indicating my target would most likely be found in said street festival.

I’d asked for directions to Fletcher Ranch since I knew from experience GPS could be spotty in rural locations. The cashier had shot me a big grin and expounded at length on the way to get there, ending in, “’Cept I’m sure they’re all here for Final Night. Try at the Love Muffin table. Jo Blake’ll know where to point you.”

I’d thanked her and headed back out to the rental to throw the car seat inside and change poor Lellie’s diaper for the tenth time since arriving in Wyoming.

Mistake number three. Well, I probably should have called that one number two .

“Gurl,” I muttered, trying to keep her from rolling off the tailgate of the SUV. “You only had puffs in the past several hours. Take out the veggie dust, and all that’s left is air. How is this the third dirty diaper since we landed? Explain yourself.”

Renata, Lellie’s nanny, had packed me with plenty of supplies, acting like Wyoming didn’t have such modern conveniences as diapers and wipes, pediatric meds, clean outfits, or age-appropriate toys. At that moment, I would have much preferred she help me remember the car seat.

By the time I got us both cleaned up and found a garbage can to dispose of the waste, I let out a breath and decided to find us both a cold bottle of water before hopping back in the car. In the meantime, I’d search for the table the cashier had recommended and ask around for anyone who might know where to find Devon.

The crowd was too much, and live music was blaring from a makeshift stage halfway down the block. Lellie alternated between screaming and tucking her face in my neck to whimper. I rubbed her back and tried to soothe her. When I finally found the Love Muffin table, we were both covered in splashes of water from where she’d flung her arm out when I’d offered her the bottle.

“Do you know where I could find Devon McKay?” I asked.

The older woman behind the table eyed me up and down. “Who’s asking?”

“An old friend here visiting from Texas. The lady at the Mercantile said you might save me a trip out to the ranch by pointing me in his direction.”

An attractive young man in a black cowboy hat sidled up and shot me a grin. “You looking for Dev? Just missed him. He just headed over that way. Standing next to the sheriff. Tall fucker, erm… ’scuse me. I meant… tall guy, the sheriff. See him?” He pointed in a direction where I definitely saw a tall man in a sheriff’s uniform shirt and well-fitting jeans.

Smiling at Devon McKay like he’d just discovered a diamond mine.

I let out a grunt.

The man next to me nodded. “Wouldn’t mind bein’ the PB&J in that man sandwich, if you want to know the truth. Ain’t neither of them bad-looking with their shirts off.”

The woman behind the table whipped a tea towel at him. “Taza Daggett, put your tongue back in your mouth and fish in a pond that’s more your own vintage. You hear me? Those men are old enough to be your uncles.”

“Wouldn’t mind either one of them being my Daddy,” he murmured, shooting me a wink. I schooled my face and returned his flirt with a scowl. If he thought he could clock me as gay, he could think again.

I was the king of straight-passing when I was in a mood, and I was for damned sure in a mood tonight. My nerves were shot, I was hot in the remnants of this morning’s work suit, and I was about to have to tell the man who had a starring role in my nocturnal fantasies that he was the lucky recipient of a lifetime’s worth of work and worry.

“Wish me luck,” I muttered to Lellie. She burst into tears and pressed her face back into my neck as I strode in the direction of the man I hadn’t seen in over two years. The man whose silhouette was just as familiar to me now as the night I’d traced it with my tongue and hands.

Before I made it through the last group of people between us, I saw the sheriff pull Dev against his side and press a kiss to his hair. My whole body jolted in surprise.

While my rational brain knew Dev could be in a relationship with someone, my stupid fantasies couldn’t even fathom it.

“Devon McKay?” I snapped before losing my nerve.

A man I didn’t recognize stepped closer to Dev. “Who’s asking?”

Dev turned to me before his eyes flared in recognition. He looked from me to Lellie before his face lost color. He seemed to look behind me as if expecting someone else… which made sense when I realized he’d be looking for Katie.

“Holy fuck,” someone said.

Dev seemed to sway on his feet. “W-why are you here?”

Despite his shock, his voice was warm and solid. It carried the same mesmerizing quality I’d been drawn to that night at Katie’s place.

I swallowed and tried not to lose focus. “To bring you your daughter.”

The sheriff wrapped a supportive arm around Dev’s waist to keep him upright, showing he was closer to Dev than I’d ever been or ever would be. “Dev?” he asked softly. “Do you know this man?”

Dev didn’t answer immediately, but his eyes were wide, and his jaw hung open in—there was no way to put it nicely—horror—and my gut twisted.

I realized with painful clarity I’d come here with a hidden agenda so foolish, so utterly ridiculous, I hadn’t consciously acknowledged it to myself until that moment.

Deep down, I’d been hoping Dev would take one look at me, and his face would light up with recognition and joy. I’d wanted him to push through the crowd toward me and instantly wrap me in an embrace so tight it would erase the two years we’d been apart. I’d wanted him to confess—possibly on his knees—that he’d thought about me every day, been haunted by me every night, and had deeply regretted not exchanging contact information. I’d hoped he’d tell me he’d missed me desperately all along.

I’d wanted him to want me.

And while I was wishing for impossible things, I’d also hoped he’d provide me with an honorable, logical, unassailable reason for agreeing to father Katie’s child that made sense of his decision to stay out of Lellie’s life. I wanted an explanation that would reveal a depth of thought and feeling, and possibly hinted at a profound love for his daughter, even if it meant loving her from a distance. I hoped for words that would bridge the gap between his choice and my understanding and show that he could, in fact, be the sort of loving, responsible father Lellie needed.

But the look of stark terror on his face when confronted with his child was enough to make it all clear.

Not only did Dev not want me, but he also didn’t want his own child.

And I could never forgive him for that.

The worst part was I still had to offer Lellie to him. I still had to tell him that he was, at least for the moment, not only her father but her legal guardian and the trustee of an obscene amount of money.

I wanted to scream. I selfishly wanted to yank the stranger’s arm away from Devon and seek a quiet place where we could talk, where I could explain everything as quickly and stoically as possible. Where I could break the devastating news of Katie’s accident to him in peace. And then follow it up with the offer to relieve him of his parental duties.

Instead, Lellie chose that moment to lose her ever-loving mind. “Mamaaaaa! Ma- maaaa !”

The words cut through my chest like dull cleavers, taking chunks out of me with each desperate syllable. Hot tears flooded my eyes, and I suddenly realized I’d reached my own breaking point for the day just as surely as Lellie had.

“Sorry,” I said quickly. “I have to go.”

And I turned around and hotfooted it back to the rental SUV as fast as I could.