Chapter 16
Brit loved her job and usually had no trouble focusing on it. Not this morning. She managed to do a thorough job of removing plaque from Joanie Ledbetter’s teeth, but maintaining her concentration had been tough.
She’d already given her mom a heads up that they needed to talk during the break. Often they each grabbed their phones and used the time for answering calls or texts, but they’d have to skip that routine this morning.
Her mother arrived in the break room ahead of her and had already poured coffee for each of them. Brit took hers because explaining why she wouldn’t be drinking it would start the conversation in the wrong place.
Her mom looked especially pretty this morning, and happy, too. Last week she’d had her hair cut shorter to take advantage of her natural curl and she loved the new style. At fifty-six she had a salt and pepper look going on and had decided not to color the silver, at least not yet.
She smiled when Brit walked in. “So what’s up?”
Brit looked into eyes the same color as hers. “You might want to have a seat.”
Her dark eyebrows rose. “Why?”
“I have big news. On Saturday night, or more like Sunday morning, I made a decision and it’s worked out the way I hoped it would.”
“Sunday morning? During our trip to Glacier?”
“No. Before that.”
“Oh.” Her gaze sharpened, a question hanging in the air.
“I didn’t want to tell you until I had something definitive to report.”
”Maybe I will sit down.” She took a chair at the small round table.
Brit sat across from her and put down her coffee. “I decided not to wait until I’m married to have a baby. So I?—”
“You went to a sperm bank? I would have gone with?—”
“No sperm bank. I found a better option.”
“What option? You’re not even dating anyone!”
“No, but I found the perfect father for my child.”
“In three days? Don’t tell me you got him online. You can’t trust?—”
“He’s right here.”
“Here?” She spun around as if he might come through the door behind her.
“In Wagon Train. I wouldn’t go online to get a baby-daddy, Mom. Sheesh.” This wasn’t going at all the way she’d scripted it in her head.
“It’s more plausible than finding one in three days in this tiny town! You know all the eligible men and none of them have suited you so far. I can’t imagine who?—”
“Trent Armstrong.”
“Who?”
“He’s Dallas Armstrong’s brother. Dallas is?—”
“Okay, I know Dallas. He came in for a cleaning before his wedding, which I didn’t get to because I had the flu. Was his brother there?”
“He was the best man. He’s lived out at Rowdy Ranch since January.”
“Have you been seeing him and failed to mention it?”
“No. But we crossed paths on Saturday night, and one thing led to another.”
“You had unprotected sex with someone you hardly know?”
“Not then. And it’s not like he’s a total stranger. Ella and Faye think he’s great.”
“They know about this plan?”
“Not yet. You’re the only one I’ve told so far.”
“Well, thank God you told me before you launched into it. I understand the urge to have a baby. Believe me, I understand it very well, but?—”
“Mom, I have launched into it. I asked him and he agreed. Trust me, this will work.”
“Why are you so sure?”
“We have a similar issue. I want to have a kid before I get any older. He’s divorced and says he’ll never marry again, although he’s sad about not having any kids. We’re in the same boat, which is why I came up with the idea.”
Her mom digested that before taking a breath. “I probably shouldn’t be surprised. I wondered if it bothered you that Ella’s pregnant.”
“I won’t lie. It’s a factor. But I don’t want to marry someone just to have a baby. This is a much better option.”
“It’s reminiscent of a Desiree McLintock move.”
“That’s exactly what it is. She’s the one who inspired me to take this step.”
“She suggested it?”
“Oh, heck, no. I can’t imagine her ever doing something like that. But she’s been on my mind this week because of her wedding. Then suddenly Trent shows up in my life — the perfect candidate.”
“He’ll give you custody? Because that’s how Desiree worked it.”
“We’ve agreed to share custody.”
“That makes it a lot more complicated. The men Desiree chose didn’t hang around. This guy has a brother here, so he may not ride conveniently off into the sunset.”
“He doesn’t plan to. He wants to be part of the baby’s life.”
“Uh-huh, like I said, complicated. You might want to give this plan a little more thought before you climb back in bed with him. I doubt you’re pregnant yet. That only happens in the movies.”
“Although—”
“Seriously, a couple of times won’t do the trick. You still can back out. Am I the only one who knows?”
“You and Dallas. Trent told him yesterday.”
“And what was his reaction?”
“He wasn’t thrilled, but he’ll be supportive.”
“So will I, if you’re sure this is right for you, but it seems really fast, honey. I wish you’d give it more thought.”
Time to shift the conversation. “I’d like you to meet him.”
“When?”
“Today for lunch at the Buffalo, if you’re okay with that.”
She blinked. “At the Buffalo? How long have you lived in Wagon Train?”
“All my life.”
“Then surely you’ve noticed that what happens at the Buffalo doesn’t stay at the Buffalo. I guarantee one of my friends will see us and ask me if Trent’s your new boyfriend. What do you want me to say?”
“I don’t know. Trent and I haven’t worked out how we’ll explain our relationship.”
“If you abandon the idea now you won’t have to explain anything.”
“We’re not going to abandon it.”
Her mom gave her a long look. “Then I’d better meet him. Have you talked about living arrangements?”
“They won’t change. He’ll continue to stay out at the ranch and I’ll have my house here in town.”
“What about your personal relationship with each other?”
“We’ll be friends.”
“Friends with benefits?”
“No, just friends.”
Her mom gazed at her. “And he’s agreed to that?”
“Yes.”
‘Then I’m going to guess the sex was terrible and your only reason to have it is to make this baby you both want.”
Heat rose to her cheeks. “Um, that’s not exactly the case.”
“You’ve both had fun?”
“Yes.” She cleared her throat. “And the last time… this morning… I felt… I felt it happen.”
Her mom gasped and her eyes widened. “You think you’re already pregnant?”
“I’m sure I am. So is he. It’s my fertile time and it was just like you described when you conceived me. I just knew.”
“Oh, Brittany.”
The use of her full name and the deep concern in her mother’s eyes crushed her. “I thought you’d be happy.”
“About the baby? Of course I am. For years I’ve dreamed of being a grandmother, but?—”
“You don’t sound happy.”
“Honey, you’ve rushed into this with a man you don’t know and I just… I don’t see how that’s going to work out.”
“It can, Mom. I know it can. Trent’s a good person, and if we avoid getting tangled up romantically, we’ll be fine.”
“You think that’s possible?”
“Why not? Desiree managed it. She’s good friends with all those guys and that’s all they are, just friends. I’ve heard her say that.”
“She does say that, but….” Her mom looked even more troubled than before.
“What?”
“You were a kid when Desiree was having those babies. I think you missed an important part of the story.”
“Which part?”
“She fell passionately in love with each of those men.”
“You mean temporarily? Like for a few days? Because I can see?—”
“Not days. Months. They’d go dancing at the Buffalo, gaze into each other’s eyes, hold hands walking down the street. It was obvious she was crazy about each one and they were crazy about her.”
“Oh.” She gulped. “I didn’t hear that. So… then what?”
“Every time my friends and I would think oh, she’s finally found a guy she’ll stick with. Then next thing we knew, he’d be gone.”
“She sent them away?”
“No, but this is Wagon Train, so eventually the story would come out, often because the guy himself confided in someone over a beer before leaving town.”
“If she didn’t make any of them go, why did they?”
“Some loved the sex but didn’t fancy being a dad so they took off before the baby was born. Looking back on it, I’ll bet she picked them because of that. But at least two, maybe three, proposed to her. When she said no, they left to find a wife.”
“I see.” Not what she’d pictured at all.
“I’m sorry, honey. If I’d known you were thinking about doing this….”
“I wasn’t until Sunday morning. Then it seemed like a brilliant solution.” And it still would be, damn it. She and Trent would work this out.
“I take it you’re not passionately in love with Trent?”
“No! And he’s not in love with me, either. That’s exactly what we plan to avoid. It would ruin everything.”
“I only ask because it sounds like you two started a fire.” She reached across the table and squeezed Brit’s arm. “It won’t be easy to put out.”