Page 50 of The Cowboy and the Baby

I processed the back-and-forth, read through them twice, and passed the phone to Noelle again. She studied me closely, and I hoped I kept a poker face on.

“Sarah doesn’t strike me as all that compassionate of a person,” I muttered, thoroughly irritated.

“Well, her instincts aren’t entirely wrong,” Noelle admitted, using her wrist to wipe her cheeks. Emotions aside, there was a sense of offloading, maybe relief, as she spoke. This ugly secret was hard to carry around, I wagered, and now it was out.

As before, I picked it up, ready to take it on. She didn’t have to be alone because she had me on her side now. No, us. Cora, Hawk, Cody, Wyatt. Anyone I could bring to her table, I would.

With Noelle, the responsibility felt like no burden.

Just inevitability.

“What do you mean, her instincts aren’t entirely wrong?” I asked, registering that she might have insulted herself.

Noelle shoved her hands into her hair, gripped it, and stared at the floor.

“Cade, I don’t know what I’m doing. I used to be a clinical trials coordinator for a pharmaceutical company. I worked a predictable job, knew when and how to show up, and slept seven to nine hours at night. Then, one day, my twin sister died. A newborn landed in my lap. A newborn whom I loved more fiercely than logic can explain. I couldn’t work and care for Lily, and my parents don’t want to acknowledge Lily because they had cut Naomi off. So . . . I buried my sister alone, quit my job, dealt with the Millers on my own, gave up my lease, pleaded for help from Marsha, learned that Grandpa’s place was up for grabs, and . . .”

She released her hair, spread her hands in front of her, as if to say, here we are. I couldn’t take the image of her standing alone, at her sister’s graveside, with Lily in her arms. My throat tightened to the point of pain.

Lost, she continued.

“If Lily’s paternal grandparents find out I’m living in a dilapidated ranch house with animals in the walls . . .”

Her voice curled into a low sob, and her body curled with it. The reddened tip of her nose, mussed hair, and watery eyes formed a little ball on the bathroom floor. A primal protectiveness surged from the crown of my head to the tip of my boots.

Aw, hell no.

Not on my watch.

I reached out and set a hand on her bent knee. The smallest poof of dust arose when I touched her. She dragged her eyes to mine. I’d never seen a vulnerability so crystal clear.

“Lily belongs with you, Noelle. There’s no doubt about that. I’ve seen the two of you together. She knows your voice, she loves you, and you take care of her as if you carried her for nine months. Let’s take the idea of giving Lily over to the Millers off the table entirely.”

A tear tracked down her cheeks. She nodded, clearly eager for the affirmation.

“Second, you’re not alone. Your parents may have . . . done whatever they did . . . but they don’t matter. You’re here at Iron Creek Ranch, and you have a home with us. You’re not going anywhere, got it?”

Her wobbling whisper almost broke. “Why do you care, Cade? You don’t owe us anything.”

So many replies arose with that question, but I couldn’t give them to her. Not yet. When she was at her most vulnerable, I couldn’t tell her that she affected me unlike any human ever had. That I was hopelessly lost in her spells of loyal, fierce, and compassionate acts. That intelligence shone from her jewel-like eyes, and her beauty bound me up in more ways than one.

She deserved to know, but not at this moment.

“Because Lily is the cutest damn baby I’ve ever seen.” Her eyes widened with a flash of amusement when I cussed in front of her, despite all attempts to hold the Cowboy Code. “And this is your home, too. Your grandpa would have taken you in in half a second.”

And you’re perfect, I silently added. I can’t get you out of my head. The thought of you anywhere beyond where I can see you is unacceptable.

Noelle seemed to think that over. Her breathing had calmed, chest collapsing in easy breaths instead of struggling pants. She looked past me to where Lily still cooed in her bouncer.

Then she met my gaze.

“Thank you.”

Her quiet words gripped a fist around my heart, but when she leaned forward, wrapped her arms around my neck, and breathed a tear-filled, “I don’t know what we’d do without you, Cade,” the fist around my heart yanked free.

I sat there with a gaping hole in my chest, my heartstrings flailing outside of my body and firmly in her grasp. I tightened my arms around her, feeling a sigh of finally move through my body.

“You’re safe, Noelle,” I whispered against her neck, one hand pressed to the back of her head. “You and Lily will always belong here. We’re going to figure this out together, squirrels and all.”