Chapter 5

Sterling woke up warm and comfy, albeit with a bit of a kink in his neck. Had he fallen asleep in his office in front of the gas log? That would explain the slight glow.

No. No, he heard a soft coo, like a dove, then another snore.

This wasn't his office.

He blinked into the gloom of the front room. The neat little ranch living room reminded him. Benji and his nephew.

Sterling sat up, his spine popping. He was at Benji's house. The guy who had adopted Sierra's baby.

Benji was sound asleep on the sofa, Xavi protected by the back of the couch and Benji's body.

The baby was wide-awake, chewing on his fist, bright, dark eyes searching and curious. It was mostly dark outside, and the fire was fading, needing to be fed.

He headed to the bathroom first, checking the light situation. Nope. So he washed up with cold water before walking back to the front room to stir the smoldering embers and put on a couple of new logs.

Benji sat up, one hand on the baby. "Mmm…thanks. I called the electric company. They say tomorrow. How do you feel about baked potatoes in the fire?"

"I told you, man. I am the king of baked potatoes." He grinned. "I can even make bacon in foil to put on them if you have some."

"Talented."

"That's me. Solution-driven." Poor Benji had no idea.

"I get that. I'm all about helping people get better."

As if he were punctuating, Xavi farted, long and loud. The super giggle that followed told him Xavi was feeling much better.

Sterling burst out laughing. "Damn. That's amazing."

"He tries. Let me go check his diaper."

"Point me to the potatoes."

"The wooden bin that says potatoes. My mom made it for me. She's…a crafter." Benji seemed half proud, half embarrassed. "Not everyone has a potato bin that says ‘Potatoes' on it."

"Cool. Always good to be straightforward." He made his way to the kitchen, listening to Xavi make happy noises. He had to say there was not one shred of evidence that this baby was unhappy.

Still, that baby was a Jordan. He deserved to have everything in the world. This was a cute little house, but it wasn't as big as the ballroom in his place. And where did Xavi stay when Benji was at work? Was there a daycare? A family member?

He could call Annette, the nanny he and Sierra'd grown up with. She'd know the best nanny to make sure Xavi had the most excellent education, the most perfect start in life.

"You are a stinky baby!" The buzz of a raspberry sounded, followed by an immediate, joyful laugh. "Daddy's stinky boy!"

God. Was he really going to be an ass and try to take Xavi away? He felt like he was being torn right in half. Already. And he'd barely met Benji.

Still, this wasn't on him. This was on Sierra's head, not his. He wasn't responsible for this shit. He would have taken the baby for Sierra. He would have moved heaven and earth for her. He still loved her like no one else. He'd tried hard to be a rock for her when she was a kid, when their folks had been having their divorce crises, yes, plural, and when the shit had hit the fan with the ranch and he went to rodeoing to set shit right. But she'd always felt stifled. She'd wanted to run from the time she'd been about fifteen.

And now he was trapped in a house in a freak winter storm with no electricity, a possible concussion, no car, and this dear man who wanted nothing more than to love this baby. God damn it.

His hands shook as he pulled out potatoes, bacon, and foil. While he was in the fridge he got all the fixings he could find so they only had to open it a few times. "Pull it together, Silver," he told himself.

"I have a wood room, so we don't have to brave this crazy weather. It's not done this—I mean a freak ice storm, we get plenty of snow—since I've lived out here. I grew up in town." The baby was dressed in a big, fluffy tiger onesie, carried on Benji's hip as if it were second nature.

"That's smart. I've always been pretty far out in the country." Not that his ranch was rustic in any way but some of the decorating. A recent visitor had told him it was like one of those classy Western TV shows come to life.

"Yeah. I hear you. I bought this place with my VA loan, and everybody thought I was a nut, but I knew." Benji put the baby in a Pack ‘N Play, putting a rattle in his hand.

"You said your folks live in town still?"

"Yep, Mom does." Benji helped him wrap potatoes in foil. "She works at the same school where she did when I was a kid. My dad is gone."

"Oh. I'm sorry." That sucked. His dad was a nut, but Sterling would give for him. "The school part is neat, though. I've been in the same home base most of my life, too. But I've been known to travel."

"I did my travelling with the service. Eight years. I'm ready to be home."

"I can see that." He could, too. The Army was a tough haul for a lot of people. He'd always wondered why Sierra had chosen that route.

"Oh, it's cool. I did better than lots, made some friends, made some money."

"Got VA loans," Sterling teased. "You've got a good life, man."

"I do." Benji glanced at the little one in the playpen. "God knows I know that."

"Yeah." He felt a bit queasy, thinking how he might be about to upset this man's apple cart. But now was no time to get squeamish. Family was important and he had so little actual family left…

"You need a glass of juice, man? I have apple, white grape, cranberry, and orange."

"Huh?" He blinked, then realized maybe he'd missed some conversation and that Benji was worried about him. "I could do some juice. I like grape fine." In fact, he liked all those juices, though orange clung to a guy's teeth.

"You seem a little shocky. I keep checking your eyes, though, so I'm hoping you're going to be fine." Benji dug out a jelly jar, filling it with juice.

"I think so. I've had my bell rung before. I'm just a little distracted. I'll be all right." He grinned. "This has actually been kinda nice. Does that sound nuts?"

"What? To have a little moment out of time and space to hang out with a stranger and a beautiful baby by the fire?" Benji laughed happily. "Nope. Seems like a good thing."

"It does." A stolen moment. And at that moment, Sterling decided not to worry on what he was going to do tomorrow until tomorrow. He'd called the hotel and let them know what had happened on a bathroom visit, but then he'd turned off his phone to save battery.

His family didn't need to know what he was doing.

He needed a solid plan before he brought this shit up to them. Mom would be bouncy. Dad would drive them all insane with his arrogance and his demands. Dad was a good man, but he sure wasn't used to being thwarted. And the more he thought about it, the more Sterling realized he needed to handle this with care.

Benji didn't seem to be a bad man. Just an unfortunate victim of Sierra's bullshit, maybe.

Benji handed him juice, and their fingers touched, and he damn near spilled the drink. That had been like a live wire touching water.

"Ooh! Did you feel that? That was some static." Benji's eyes went wide. "Too much tin foil?"

"I— Yeah. That was wild." He thought there was way more to it than that, but hey, maybe he was having some wishful thinking. And that way was madness, right? Better to be on the safe side and ignore the electricity between them.

"So, do we just put the potatoes in the fire? Do you want more coffee?"

"We do, and I would love that." He headed to the fireplace, where he stirred things up, getting some good coals over to one side so they could keep adding wood, but the potatoes could cook evenly.

"I'll put the kettle on." Benji started making coffee, no stress at all, and he thought about his fancy espresso maker at home. It was probably shitty of him to think that this felt like camping out.

So he stopped thinking. Again. Damn, he should work harder at that.

Instead, he just…sat and played cards, drank coffee, and pretended he hadn't been heading to this house to figure out whether Benji was a decent person.