A Cowboy’s Promise Book Two Preview
Mia
I’m frozen on the spot when Brian shouts his demands at me. I still can’t believe that he’s actually here. How did he find the address? How did he know that I took this job? Even if there are answers for both of those questions, this makes no sense. In six years, he’s never expressed interest in me or our child. Why now?
“I told you, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Despite my insistence, I know that he doesn’t believe me. Brian knows I decided to keep Ellie. He knows that she’s around here somewhere. Maybe I can convince him otherwise. Maybe he’ll leave without causing too much trouble.
I have to play this carefully, however. He’s always had a vicious temper. I don’t want to get fired after I’ve barely been here a week. There’s no one else to hear him yell, at the very least.
“Don’t you lie to me,” Brian warns, pointing at me with one thick finger before wiping at his forehead, thick with sweat. “I know she’s here. You’re not going to keep my daughter from me again.”
He’s never cared about Ellie. From the very start, from the moment we found out that I was pregnant, he wanted nothing to do with it. He ran off and abandoned me, and I’ve raised Ellie by myself. There’s no reason for him to see her after this long, and I’m not going to let him trample over me.
“Listen, Brian, it would be better if you leave,” I say evenly, struggling to keep my voice low. “You have no right to storm into my place of work and make absurd demands, and you know it.”
I’m shaking, but I hold my ground. There’s a panic button right under my desk if I need it. I don’t think that Brian would get physical, but I haven’t seen him in years. I have no idea what he’s capable of, or what lengths he would go to in this state. It didn’t matter. He won’t be seeing Ellie.
Brian smashes his fist into the desk, making me jump, but I don’t let the tension show on my face.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he shouts, spittle spattering in front of me. “You think you can just run away and keep her to yourself forever? She’s my daughter, too! Go get her!”
I let my finger hover under the panic button, ready for anything. My heart is beating quickly, and I swallow before I shake my head.
“No. Get out.” I use my free hand to point at the front doors, holding it as steady as possible. A part of me is wishing some good Samaritan guest will walk in and save me. Or anyone, really. Any distraction will win me some time and give me a chance to get out of here myself. Brian can be persistent, and it’s not always a good quality.
“I’m not going anywhere until you bring me my daughter, Mia,” Brian hisses at me, glancing behind him—likely to make sure that we’re still alone in here. “I deserve to see her, and you can’t just hide her forever.”
“You haven’t wanted anything to do with her for the last six years,” I retort, my jaw clenched. “Why should I let you see her now? To confuse her? To let you abandon her again? I don’t think so. You’d better get out right now, or I will force you to.”
“Please, as if I haven’t wanted to see her!” Brian starts to move around the desk. I’m close to pushing that button now. “You’ve always taken her, moved around, made sure I couldn’t find you. I’m not letting that happen again.”
I already feel like I’m going crazy. Brian has that effect on people. I know he’s lying, that he’s trying to throw me off my game. That’s not going to work today.
“I’m calling security,” I say, but before I can touch the panic button, Brian has launched half his body over the desk and grabbed my wrist.
“Don’t you dare,” he hisses, his face so close to mine I can smell the mints on his breath. I’m frozen, unsure of what to do from here.
“Excuse me, sir, I’m going to have to ask you to let go of our receptionist.”
Chance’s voice sends a wave of relief rushing through my body. If the situation wasn’t so tense, I would have run at him and leapt in his arms. Instead, I pull my wrist free from Brian’s grasp and glare at him.
“Who the hell are you?” Brian swings on his heels to face Chance. I’m worried that this is going to turn into a physical fight. I don’t press the panic button, but I’m still standing close just in case.
“I’m the owner of this ranch.” Chance doesn’t tip his hat or offer Brian a handshake. His usual polite demeanor isn’t there at all. It’s intimidating, but somehow it makes me feel safe. His wide shoulders and powerful stance make him tower over Brian, who’s always had problems with his posture.
“Well, owner-man,” Brian answers mockingly, a growl in his tone, “you better tell this little receptionist that her little kidnapping games are over. I want to see my daughter.”
Chance glances over Brian’s shoulder at me for just a second, as if he’s deciding whether or not to believe what Brian is saying. Finally, he shakes his head and turns back toward my ex.
“Look, you want to dispute anything, you go through the courts. All you’re doing now is trespassing on my property, and I have the right to forcibly remove you.”
Brian starts to laugh, an unhinged sound that sends a chill through my bones, but I stand my ground, and so does Chance.
“So I gather you’re her new little boyfriend, aren’t you?” Brian says with a deep sigh that conveys no emotion. “That’s cute. Really. You think you can stick your nose in our business. It doesn’t belong there, cowboy. This isn’t about you. Step away and let the grown-ups deal with it.”
Chance moves himself between Brian and the desk in such a fluid motion that I have to blink several times to make sure it actually happened. I peer past him to see Brian prepare to start swinging.
“Get out of my way,” Brian says with a hiss, but Chance has his phone in his hand.
“If you’d like to get the police involved and have even less access to your daughter, be my guest and try something.” Chance’s tone is still calm, but there’s a torrent beneath it that almost makes me shiver.
“Look, you think you’re funny,” Brian growls. “But I will sue this place and make it burn to the ground.”
“How exciting.” Chance squares his shoulders and rolls his neck. “Are you leaving, or am I getting law enforcement involved?”
Brian stares me down behind the desk. “This isn’t over, Mia.”
With that, he spins on his heel and marches himself out of the lodge. I want to breathe a sigh of relief, but I know that he’s not going to let this go. I don’t know what he’s capable of at this point. I haven’t seen him in six years.
I let go of the pent-up air in my chest as Chance turns to look at me. “Thanks.”
My tone is flat, and I know I sound rude. But I never would have thought that Chance would witness this side of my life. Why would Brian want to see Ellie now, anyway? Has he been following me for years?
“Are you okay?” Chance reaches over the desk to put a hand on my cheek. The look of deep concern on his face only serves to worsen my nausea. I know he’s only trying to help, but it feels like he’s definitely seen too much.
I pull my face away from him, unable to look him in the eye. “It’s fine.”
Despite the fact that I know Chance probably has a hundred questions, I don’t want to talk to him. This is too much for me. I don’t want him that deep in my heart, to know so many of my vulnerabilities.
“Look, I get that you might not want to talk about it.” Chance sighs and takes a step back. I have to admit that I’m surprised that he’s not pushing the issue. That he isn’t demanding that he has a right to know, especially when Brian is threatening the ranch.
“But I’ll make sure he doesn’t get through the gates again.” Chance puts his hands on the desk to emphasize how serious he is. “I promise, you’re safe here. There’s nothing to worry about. I know what his car looks like, and he’s not getting to you.”
Even though I believe him, some part of my heart cannot settle down. What if Brian tries to kidnap Ellie? Or the courts actually decide that he deserves visitation? I’m not sure how I would handle either situation.
“You shouldn’t have interfered,” I finally reply. My tone is harsher than I could have ever intended, but it clearly affects Chance. He takes a step back, a quick shadow crossing his face.
“He was going to get physical,” he points out. “You wanted me to let him hurt you?”
I’m already conflicted and defensive. Instead of thanking Chance, my mind insists on going in the other direction. Maybe if I get him angry enough, he’ll realize I’m no good for him and leave. Maybe he’ll give up. That’s the only way I can protect him from getting involved in all of this.
“I had it under control. It’s none of your business, anyway. Were you down here spying on me? Did you think I’d fall at your feet and worship you?”
Every word that I say is painful, especially as I watch the expression on Chance’s face turn from concern to hurt. I know that I’m wrong, that he doesn’t deserve this. Yet I can’t stop myself. Perhaps now he will see that I am far more trouble that I’m worth, and he’ll cease his attempts to be with me. That’s something that I would deserve right now, for him to push me aside and to find someone better.
“Listen, I’m not sure what’s going on with you.” He steps back, regarding me with wary eyes. “But you’re not thinking straight. I’ll leave, if that’s what you want, but I’ll be back to talk to you again tomorrow.”
“Don’t,” I insist, surprised that he’s not trying to argue back at all. “You don’t need to be involved with any of this.”
“Fine, then you can come find me if you want to talk.” Chance shrugs before he turns away from me. There’s a guest standing wide-eyed at the entrance to the reception. I’m sure she’ll leave a scathing review of our unprofessionalism, but right now, I don’t care.
As Chance leaves, I already want to kick myself. I’m not just pushing him away; I’m shoving as hard as I can, despite the fact that the only thing I want is to pull him closer, to lean into him. I shake my head at myself, trying to find that receptionist-smile to deal with the guest in front of me.
“I’m so terribly sorry about that,” I say, allowing a short, dry chuckle to escape me. “It’s been a long day.”
“You should really be keeping your personal life at home,” she replies, clicking her tongue at me as she approaches the desk. “We don’t want to deal with that on vacation.”
I have a barrage of snappy answers in my mind, but none of them leave my lips. Instead, I nod and smile and straighten my name badge.
“Of course. I apologize again. Now is there anything I can help you with?”
Once the guest is gone, I take my first real breath after the arguments. There’s still a lot of time before my shift is over, but I want to check on Ellie. She’s been in our room for hours, and I’m almost sure that she must have heard something. She might be scared.
Eventually, I convince myself that it’s quiet enough that I can simply slip out for a few minutes to speak with my daughter. I put the “Back in Five” sign on my desk; hopefully whoever comes in will just think that I’m in the bathroom.
I head back to our space, knocking on the door. My heart is beating fairly quickly. Was it closed? And the windows? When did she open them, or had I left them that way this morning? I hope desperately that she didn’t hear anything, but that’s unlikely.
“It’s Mommy,” I announce when Ellie doesn’t immediately answer. She still doesn’t say anything, so I gently and quietly make my way inside.
She’s on the edge of my bed, pouting as she stares at her feet, gently swinging from one side to the other. She’s clearly upset. She heard. The question now is, how much? I haven’t told her a lot about Brian, and I really have no idea if she wants to meet him. Even if she does, it’s for the best that he never gets to see her. But how do you tell that to a six-year-old?
I sit next to Ellie and put a hand on her knee. She leans into my shoulder. That’s a good thing. She’s upset, but she’s not mad at me, and she’s not screaming. Maybe we can get through this without too much drama.
“Is the scary man really my daddy?” Ellie asks, the sentence tearing through the silence between us. I want to tell her that he isn’t, and that she has nothing to worry about, but I’m sure Ellie will be able to tell that I’m lying.
“He doesn’t have to be,” I answer, knowing that I’m being overly cryptic. “If you don’t want him to be your dad, then he won’t be.”
“Okay, don’t let him,” Ellie insists firmly, a statement that lifts my heart ever so slightly. If Ellie wanted Brian in her life, if she was fighting me as much as he is, I’m not sure I would have been able to keep him at bay. I still don’t know if I can. If he has any rights to see her at all. Brian’s the kind who might be able to convince a court, though. I have to be ready for whatever he wants to throw at me. And I will be. I will fight him, all on my own, like I always have.
“I want the cowboy to be my dad,” Ellie replies quickly, wrapping her little arms around mine and wiping a dribble from her nose on my sleeve. “Can he?”
End of preview.
Discover what happens next in A COWBOY’S PROMISE BOOK TWO.
*****
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