24. Christian
CHRISTIAN
I pressed my fist to my mouth to keep from smiling. Cassandra looked so fucking guilty when I caught her with her ear to the door.
She pressed her hand to her chest, letting out a sharp breath. “You scared the shit out of me. How the hell did you sneak up those stairs?”
Trying to play it off all casual, I stroked my beard. “I know all the creaky spots. Stick around long enough and you’ll learn them.”
“Your brother’s here,” she hissed.
“I know,” I said in a hushed voice that matched hers. “I saw him come in on the cameras.”
“He kidnapped your children,” she whisper-yelled.
“He does that.”
Her eyes widened. “And you’re okay with that?”
Dammit. I liked when she was worried about the girls.
“Why are we whispering?” I said.
“Because I don’t want them to know I’m still out here!”
A slow grin spread across my face. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say either you care or you’re curious. Maybe both.”
“I don’t. I’m just a professional. Letting a client get kidnapped is typically bad for business.”
“My daughters aren’t your clients.”
“They’re client-adjacent.” She swatted my stomach. “Stop with the semantics.”
I snickered under my breath. “I’m just messing with you.” Since she was blocking the door, I used it to my advantage and trapped her against it, pinning her down with my hips. “You never explained why there’s a photo of the mayor with a knife in it.”
The soft silver clouds in her eyes turned to razor blades. “He pissed me off. Apparently, anger helps with throwing accuracy.”
I lifted my eyebrows. “Do I want to know what happened?”
Cassandra patted my chest. “I handled it.”
No one was around to see us, so I cupped her cheek and kissed her. “That’s my girl.”
She pulled away. “What are you doing? Someone might see.”
The edge in her voice stung.
“No one’s going to see. They’re inside and we’re out here.”
Her hand pressing against my chest stopped me. “So? I’m not risking it.”
“Risking what?”
I was the one with the rule about my kids not being exposed to the casual nature of my romantic life. I was the one who had to keep this house from crumbling. I was the one with everything on the line.
If she was worried about someone seeing, then she needed to admit that there was something to hide.
“I should get back to work,” she said, trying to squeeze by.
I stopped her with a hand on her waist. “Why were you eavesdropping?”
“I was just leaving.”
“Bullshit.” I fisted the back of her hair, bringing her mouth to mine again.
Her eyes grew heavy and her lips dropped open, grazing mine. It was like I had accessed the master controls to her submission.
“See?” I murmured against the corner of her mouth. “I told you that you’d like it when I’m in control.” I tightened my grip at the base of her scalp.
Cassandra didn’t bother arguing. She knew I’d call bullshit.
“You’re going to walk inside with me,” I whispered.
“No, I’m not.”
“Then I’ll carry you inside over my shoulder. Your choice.”
I was testing her and she knew it. I wanted her to acknowledge that she felt something between us.
We had been playing for fun, but I wanted to play for money. We were in a game of chicken, but she wasn’t flinching.
I crooked a finger beneath her chin and tipped it up. “Don’t stand outside pressing your ear to the door when there’s a seat for you at the table.”
“I told you to stop speaking like a cowboy fortune cookie,” she said softly.
I kissed her again. “And I told you there was room.”
“Christian, we shouldn’t?—”
The door handle clicked as I pushed it open.
“Daddy!” Gracie shrieked from inside the house.
Cassandra broke away and I let her, but I kept her hand in mine.
“What are you doing?” she spat.
“I’m telling you it’s okay to care,” I snapped as I whipped around. “Alright? It doesn’t make you weak or less in control.”
Her eyes widened as a small body careened into my hip.
“Hey, baby girl.” I refused to let Cassandra’s hand go as I hugged Gracie. “How was school?”
Cassandra dug her nails into my palm. I squeezed harder.
“It was great! Uncle Ray surprised us. He picked us up and took us out to lunch and brought us back and now we’re coloring and watching a movie!”
“ Kidnapper ,” Cassandra sang under her breath.
Gracie’s smile grew when she peeked around me and saw that Cassandra was still here. She gasped. “You didn’t leave!”
Knife, meet heart.
“Can you be done working today?” she begged.
I flicked my wrist and looked at the time. Usually, I had a strict policy against cutting out of work early. And, in all honesty, I had just come back to the house to tell Cassandra that Ray was here. I had more things I needed to do today.
But damn that look.
“Yeah, baby. I’m done for today. Let me get my shoes off and I’ll come in.”
“Yay!” she squealed, jumping up and down. “Miss Cass, are you done working too?”
“I’m not finish?—”
“She’s done,” I said. “Pretty sure Uncle CJ will be up here in a minute. Do you have homework?”
Gracie shook her head.
“Alright, go finish coloring Uncle Ray’s tattoos before supper.”
“I’m still working,” Cassandra snapped when Gracie ran back inside.
“The ranch is closed. You’re off the clock.”
“The ranch is never closed.”
“I’ll put a padlock on the office.”
Her eyes narrowed. “You wouldn’t.”
“You wanna try me, princess? There’s more to life than clocking forty hours a week.”
She guffawed. “Like you’re one to talk. You work twice that.”
“My job makes me happy and it puts food on the table. Your job only does one of those things. I hope your full fridge is worth it.”
“I’m happy.” She had the words, but she didn’t have the music.
“Maybe someday I’ll believe you.”
And with that, I dragged her inside.
I was right. CJ came up from the fields before the workday was done. Soon, my living room was packed as ranch hands filtered in to see Ray.
To my surprise, Cassandra didn’t hide away in her room. She made my armchair her throne, staying accessible but silent.
I wasn’t sure what had crawled up her ass, but I was done with it. This standoff would end one way or another, just as soon as I could get her alone.
When Momma called everyone up to the main house for dinner, Bree and Gracie talked Cassandra’s ear off.
She tolerated it a little more than usual.
When we shuffled through the buffet line that was spread out across the kitchen counters, Becks waddled beside Cassandra so they could catch up on some piece of gossip she had heard while in town.
When we sat down at the long row of folding tables that had been pushed against the dining room table, I made sure to take the seat beside Cassandra.
And to my surprise, she held my hand and let me lace our fingers together when my father stood and said grace.
“You and I are gonna have a conversation later,” I murmured as food was shoveled into mouths and Ray was peppered with questions about his last competition.
Cassandra, sitting prim and proper with her back straight and her napkin across her lap, cut her eyes at me. “That’s unnecessary.”
“Fine. A business meeting then.”
I was ready to haul her out like a caveman, but Becks let out a gasp that made the table go silent.
“Oh—”
Nate put his hand on her back as she hunched over. “Talk to me, Red,” he said quietly.
It had been eleven years since I’d seen a woman with that look on her face, but I remembered it like it was yesterday.
After thirty seconds of holding her breath in tense silence, Becks dropped her fork and nodded. “Time to go.”
Momma dabbed her mouth with her napkin. “Already?”
Becks’s eyes were glassy. “I’ve been having contractions since lunch.”
“Well, why didn’t you say anything?” she exclaimed.
“I didn’t know how long it would be and I didn’t want to get everyone into a tizzy,” Becks said as Nate helped her up, bracing her elbow and back.
Gracie gasped. “You mean you’re gonna have the baby, Aunt Becks?”
Becks nodded with a watery smile. “Seems like it.”
Nate was older than me, but I had been a father for thirteen years. I felt a sense of pride watching him dote on Becks and help her out of the kitchen.
Ray lifted his beer. “Mazel tov.”
CJ and the ranch hands joined in, toasting them.
Becks made it to the door before she had to pause and breathe through a contraction. My throat tightened as Nate knelt in front of her, letting her rest her forearms on his shoulders. He kept a protective hand on her belly.
Nate looked up and his eyes met mine.
I gave him a nod, not needing to say anything else.
Momma hurried after them with a grocery bag full of food so they wouldn’t be hungry.
“Is Aunt Becks gonna have a boy or girl?” Bree asked as dinner resumed.
“We’ll just have to wait and see,” I said. “They decided not to find out until the baby’s born.”
“Did you find out if we were girls or boys before we were born?” Gracie asked.
I nodded. “Yeah. Your mom wanted to know right away.” A wistful smile forced itself onto my face. “She was so excited to have girls.”
“Do you want children?” My dad asked Cassandra.
She choked on a sip of water and laughed. “No. I can’t think of anything worse than pushing out a baby.”
“Kidney stones,” CJ said.
I chuckled. “Not even close.”
Ray piped up. “Getting kicked by a bull.”
I thought it over. “Once or for thirteen hours straight?”
He glowered. “Fine. Babies are worse.”
“Do you want more babies?” Gracie asked me around a massive bite of mashed potatoes.
“Don’t talk with your mouth full,” I reminded her, hoping that would derail that conversation.
Every once in a while, Bree and Gracie got on a streak of begging for another sister.
They were very clear that it had to be a girl, though. No boys allowed.
Gracie swallowed. “Will we ever have another sibling?”
Just fucking great.
My brothers snickered behind their beers. Even Cassandra cracked a smile.
“You’re about to have a baby cousin. And Uncle Nate and Aunt Becks live here on the ranch so it’ll be like having a sibling.”
“You’re avoiding the question,” Bree said with a smirk that was way too grown up for her.