Chapter 16
16
B efore four, Jake slipped out of the barn with Jeffrey on his shoulders.
“I like the kitties, but the puppy was all woof, and the kitties run away.” Jeffrey banged enthusiastically on Jake’s hat. “Run away, run away.”
“Easy on the hat, cowpoke,” Jake warned. “Yes, kittens are good at running and hiding. But now we’re done with kittens and you need to get cleaned up. You’ve got kitten fluff and hay all over you, and we’re headed to Tansy’s sister’s house. You wash up and put on clean clothes, okay?”
“‘Kay.” Jeffrey wiggled. “Fly me.”
It was too easy to oblige. Jake flipped the little tyke off his shoulders and proceeded to twirl Jeffrey in circles all the way to the apartment. The kid squealed and laughed the entire trip.
Melissa stood waiting on the porch, a small smile dancing on her lips as they arrived. “Someone is having a good time.”
Jeffrey nodded, squirming to be put down. He vanished into the apartment.
“I hope it’s okay, but I told Jeffrey I was taking him over to play with Tansy’s nieces and nephew tonight.” Awkwardness hit hard and fast. “I should have asked first.”
“Don’t apologize,” Melissa insisted. “I just got home, and you probably had to make plans much earlier. I wasn’t answering my phone while I was busy.”
“We did.” He looked her over. “How was your day?”
“A lot of driving, but I think it was worthwhile.” She glanced over her shoulder. “Come in for a minute.”
“Oh, I should?—”
She was already marching away from him, the door left wide open.
Jake gingerly stepped into the space that was legally his, closing the door with reluctance. “I need to get changed. If you can bring Jeffrey to the house once he’s got clean stuff on, that would be great.”
“Oh, I’m sure he’ll be ready in a minute. Then he can walk over with you.” Her eyes brightened, and she reached into her purse. “This gives us a minute alone. There’s something we need to discuss. And I need to apologize.”
That would be a first. “Apologize for what?”
“For not suggesting this right away. It might have made things go smoother between us.” She laid a piece of paper on the table and pushed it toward him. “I only want what’s best for my son.”
Jake leaned forward and scanned the official looking document quickly, not quite sure what he was seeing.
The piece of paper was an application for adjusting a birth certificate. Name: Jeffrey Drea. Birthdate: September sixth.
In the place to name the father it said Jacob Anthony Skye .
For a second, Jake couldn’t breathe. His gaze snapped up to Melissa’s. “What the hell?”
“In Alberta, there’s a thing called voluntary acknowledgment of paternity, and it doesn’t require a DNA test. So it would be simple enough to say that you’re his?—”
“It’s a lie.”
“But it’s a lie that doesn’t hurt anything. It would mean that Jeffrey has two people in this world who love him and care about him.”
How she said it with a straight face, Jake could not fathom. “Melissa, you’re making it sound as if I’m his father. And while I do care about him—I’m caring for him while he’s here to help you out. I’m not his dad.”
Melissa dropped her chin for a moment then her lashes fluttered upward. “You could be. You and I could be together again, and that would make?—”
“Holy crap, Mel. What fairy-tale world are you living in?” Somehow Jake kept his volume from rising too far. Jeffrey did not need to hear him shouting at his mom. He eyed her hard. “Are you high?”
“I found the letters.”
Jake froze.
She twisted and went to the side counter. Sure enough, she lifted the entire bundle of letters and cards and cradled them in her arms as if they were precious. The bundle that he was certain he’d destroyed.
Hadn’t he?
“They were under the bed. I dropped an earring, and when I went looking for it, I found the bundle just under the edge of the frame.”
Jake’s brain scrambled for the how and why. He’d stashed the bundle in the closet and then he’d gotten rid of?—
Shit . The day of Aiden’s wedding. Tansy had rushed in and tossed the bundle away and Jake hadn’t thought of it even once since. It must have landed out of sight and out of mind.
Melissa made a small noise, somewhere between a sigh and a sob, and he jerked his attention to her face. “I know we didn’t work out, but we were young. I know now that I was selfish. I didn’t come here specifically thinking that we’d get back together, but once I saw you again and then found these letters…” Moisture filled her eyes. “You wouldn’t have kept them if I didn’t mean something to you. It made me think of Jeffrey’s future and everything I can’t give him without your help.”
Speechless. Jake was struck utterly speechless. He just stared, not really sure what was happening.
“You don’t care about me at all?” It came out all wobbly and innocent.
“Dammit, Mel.” Jake changed his tone, speaking softer, regret tinging his words. She did have a reason for her hair-brained idea, even if it was completely out of line. “I’m with Tansy. She’s a caring, giving woman who challenges me in all the right ways. I’m not— I’m sorry. I’m not looking to get back together with you.”
Melissa nodded slowly. “Okay. I’m sorry, too. I never imaged that you’d have someone in your life, and of course, I don’t want to get in the middle of that.”
Jake extended his hand. “I’ll take those.”
She hesitated then passed the bundle over. She smiled hesitantly. “Okay. Mental reset. I still need some time to figure out my future, but now I know the truth. You will not be a part of it.”
Being together had never been an option as far as he was concerned, but that didn’t need to be resaid. “As long as we’re clear.”
“Absolutely.” Melissa’s gaze darted to the side. “Jeffrey, baby. Come here and let your mom see you.”
The kid stopped a pace away from her, back straight but smiling. “I’m going to play with Tansy’s niblings.”
“What fun. You make sure you’re on your best behavior, yes? Don’t disappoint your mother.” Melissa nodded firmly then turned toward the kitchen. “I haven’t eaten since breakfast.”
Jeffrey was already at the door, shoving his feet into shoes as fast as he could, ignoring the fact he had his left shoe on his right foot. He grabbed Jake’s hand and hauled him outside without another glance at his mom.
Jake shook his head then scooped up the little tyke. Time to ignore the crazy that had just happened and focus on what was more important. “It’s better to put the shoes on before you start running. Silly buckaroo.”
“Silly Jeffy,” the kiddo corrected. Then he shrieked with delight as Jake held him upside down and carried him, still swinging, toward the main ranch house. “Silly Jakey.”
“You’re full of beans,” Jake offered with a grin.
His mama might have a few tools loose in the shed, but the kid? One hundred percent joy. Jake flipped him right-side up and settled him back onto his shoulders.
Jeffrey grabbed on tight and laughed with childish abandon.
Something seemed so familiar about Jeffrey, but Tansy couldn’t put her finger on what it was. Something she hadn’t really noticed when it was just the two of them in the house, but mixing him up with her niblings, especially Harper, who was the same age, the sensation grew stronger.
He’d slipped into the middle of Carter, Chloe, and Harper like a greased pig, with complete childish enthusiasm and all the energy of a five-year-old.
At ten, Carter was on the cusp of insisting he was far too old to join in the games that Chloe and Harper wanted to play. But the instant Jeffrey arrived, evening out the boys-versus-girls ratio, everything changed.
With Jake there as well, Tansy’s amusement level was through the roof. They weren’t only building a racetrack for Hot Wheels that went around ninety percent of the playroom. They were building a Space Mover Deluxe with a loop in the middle and a Lego bridge for all of Harper’s favourite toys to gather and cheer each time a car went flying down the track.
Controlled chaos at its finest with Jeffrey wide-eyed and quieter than the others and very, very observant.
Tansy alternated between joining in and building as directed by Harper and Jeffrey, and hitting the kitchen to make a crumble to go with the rest of supper she was assembling.
She slipped out to the washroom, but the kids’ bathroom in the hall was occupied. So she followed the usual family protocol and slid into Ivy and Walker’s room. Her sister insisted it was never a problem, but Tansy still kept her head down and didn’t take too much time admiring the beautiful quilt on the bed or the family pictures in black-and-white on the wall.
After washing up and silently opening the door, Tansy took one step into the room to discover Jeffrey motionless at the foot of the bed.
“Did you get lost?” she asked.
He nodded, eyes going wide.
She held out a hand. “This is my big sister’s room. It’s very pretty, but we should stay in the other parts of the house.”
“Okay.”
That was the first, but not the last time that Tansy turned around to discover Jeffrey not where she expected him to be.
The kid moved like a ghost.
“My mommy works at the school,” Harper informed Jeffrey as they sat next to each other at the dining room table. “And my daddy rides horses.”
“He used to ride bulls,” Carter added enthusiastically, “but he said he likes his head attached to his spine, and bull riding can make your bones shake apart, so he doesn’t do that anymore.”
Jeffrey’s eyes were the size of dinner plates. “His head could come off?”
“It’s an expression.” Chloe lifted her nose like the little expert she was. “It never really came off.” She frowned then turned to Tansy. “Right?”
Oh, the temptation to tell a whopper right then. Auntie Tansy could get her brother-in-law tangled in so much mischief, but she restrained herself. “You’re right, it’s only an expression. Like when we’re having fun, and we say we’re having a blast.”
Carter snickered. He put his hands together as if he were holding a ball then threw them into the air as he shouted, “Kaboom.”
After supper, and after dishes were done and the playroom had been deconstructed, Chloe had a request. “Can we play hide and go seek?”
“Absolutely,” Jake said, instantly dropping to the floor and covering his face with his hands. “I’m counting to twenty,” he warned.
Four children and Tansy darted from the room.
Of course Jake found her first, standing against the wall near the front entrance. He pushed aside the coat she’d used to cover her face and upper body, one brow raised high. “It usually helps if you cover both the top and the bottom.”
Tansy looked down to discover the second jacket that had been hanging from the bottom hook lay on the floor by her feet. Which of course, left her entire lower body in full view. “Some little sneak took my cover off,” she complained.
A giggle sounded from behind the couch.
Jake winked. “Good thing there’s no one hidden nearby who might’ve tried to commit sabotage on their auntie.”
Another giggle, and this time Tansy pressed her hand over her mouth to keep from joining in.
Being found first was perfect. Getting to follow along behind Jake allowed Tansy to watch the precious moments when he discovered each of her nieces. Harper was the little mischief maker hiding behind the couch. Chloe had somehow snuck around behind Jake’s back as he counted and covered herself in a blanket. She looked like nothing more than a messy lump on the edge of the loveseat.
Funniest though was the expression on Carter’s face as Jake slowly peeled back the curtain in his room. His little boy face was screwed up tight, with his eyes closed as if truly believing that ostrich story of if you can’t see them, no one can see you.
Finally the only one missing was Jeffrey. He wasn’t in the kitchen, the living room, or either of the two children’s rooms.
There was a moment’s excitement when Jake tried the bathroom door and discovered it was locked. He motioned Tansy forward. “I assume you can do something about this?”
She reached above the doorframe and pulled down a wooden skewer from where Ivy kept it in case of emergencies. “Next time give me something challenging,” she whispered.
A moment later, he’d slipped the end of the stick into the emergency unlock button in the center of the doorknob, and the lock clicked easily.
Jake eased the door open. “Ready or not, you will be caught.”
No one. Not in the bathtub, not behind the door. Jake even opened the cupboards under the sink, but while there was room for a child to hide, the space was empty.
He turned back to her, frowning. “These kids are amazing. They’re even using misdirection. I could’ve sworn the door was locked for a reason.”
Five more minutes of looking, and Tansy decided to call it. The other kids were still looking, but it was time. “Come out, come out, wherever you are, Jeffrey. You won the game.”
To all of their shock, ten seconds later Jeffrey popped out of the bathroom, a huge grin in place as he rushed forward to wrap his arms around Tansy’s leg.
She tousled his hair but kept the rest of her questions to herself. “Good job. Okay, it’s time for pyjamas and stories.”
Jake gave her a look, but he took Jeffrey into Carter’s room with the bag with pyjamas that they’d brought along.
Tansy went and examined the bathroom. She knew they hadn’t missed seeing him, so there had to be another explanation. But she didn’t really want to ask him because?—
The laundry chute. Set to the side, behind the door, was the sliding opening that led to the basement. Tansy used her phone’s flashlight and took a peek, but she already knew the answer. The width was more than big enough for a child to fit.
There were open spaces between the bare two by fours lining the inside of the passage, and she was pretty sure they would make a dandy ladder.
That uncomfortable feeling in her belly didn’t go away, not through story time or the goodbye hugs and kisses once Ivy and Walker got home.
Jeffrey fell asleep in the car seat as they drove back out to High Water.
“You’re quiet,” Jake said, his strong fingers linked with hers.
“Just thinking,” she offered quietly. She didn’t want to say anything until she was sure. She wouldn’t allow uncertain parts of her past to dump suspicions on an innocent child.
Jake squeezed her hand. “I’ll take Jeffrey back to the apartment. Hopefully Melissa is there. And then there’s a couple of things I should do in the barn.”
“I’ll probably head to bed early,” Tansy told him, offering him a smile. “You were awesome tonight, as usual.”
“You’re far worse at hide and go seek than expected,” he teased.
He had no idea how much effort it took to be bad at something she’d been trained to be better than good at.
Three days later, Tansy volunteered to drive May to the bus stop for her journey at nine a.m. The young woman had spoken with lawyers and the police, and with Jake and Declan’s suggestions, she had a full list of things to take care of with her family and friends’ help.
“I’m glad I had a chance to stay somewhere quiet while I got myself straightened out,” May said. She paused as if considering her next words. “I really am grateful, and so I don’t want to say this, but I feel as if I should. I think maybe you should keep a close eye on Helen.”
“Oh? Is there something wrong?”
“Not anything dangerous,” May said quickly. “And I do hate to mention it, but I could’ve sworn I had a pair of earrings with me that I can’t find now. They weren’t really valuable, but they were from a trip I took that made me happy. I don’t think it’s Jinx—that girl is amazingly sweet.”
“I am sorry,” Tansy offered immediately, dazed by the somewhat surreal conversation. “Sometimes it’s worse to have something that’s got sentimental value go missing. I’ll make sure we take an extra good look around when we clean up. And I’ll take the warning to heart.”
May waved a hand. “You know what? In the big scheme of things, it’s small beans. If she wanted them, I hope they help her down the road. But I thought you should know.”
“Of course.” Tansy sat in silence for a moment, unlocked doors and confusing thoughts tangling together. “If by chance you find them when you get home, please let me know. I’m glad you said something.”
“Thank you.” They slipped outside and May took her suitcase and stepped into Tansy’s arms to hug her tightly. “You’re making a difference. That’s not always easy,” she said firmly.
“You’re making a difference in your own life,” Tansy returned. “I wish you every happiness going forward.”
May lifted her chin, nodded once, then got on the bus.
Tansy’s uneasiness lingered far longer than the trip back to High Water. What were the chances two of their guests had stolen from each other?
ZenBaby made a strange noise for a moment, and Tansy tightened her grip on the wheel. She tapped the brakes lightly, but they seemed to engage. Still, not a good sign. Fine. She’d make an appointment for the poor thing at the shop ASAP.
She was just about at the ranch when her phone went off.
Tansy hit answer and sent it to hands-free mode. “Julia?”
“What are you up to this morning?” her friend asked.
“It’s Monday, so I was planning on going for a walk and maybe bugging my parents at the bookstore for a while. You need company?”
“Yup. There’s someone I want you to meet. Come over now.”
Julia hung up without a word of explanation.
Suspicions high, Tansy instantly contacted Petra. “Have you heard from Julia this morning?”
“Yes. I’ve been summoned.” The rush of voices in the background quieted slightly. “I was about to head over.”
“I’m turning into High Water right now. Jump in and we’ll go over together.”
Less than five minutes later, Petra was buckled up and Tansy laid rubber as she headed straight out to Red Boot ranch. “Julia’s either out of her mind with boredom or she had the baby.”
“We were over last night, and she never said a word,” Petra protested. “And we didn’t leave until after midnight.”
“A lot can happen in a few hours.”
Truer words had never been spoken. The sheer number of vehicles outside the small cabin Petra and Zach lived in was a dead giveaway that Tansy and Petra weren’t the only ones who had been called.
A slightly slimmer Julia answering the door with an armful of pink and blue blankets was the final answer. “Hey, you came.”
“Julia Sorenson, you take the cake.” Petra swooped in and hugged her tight. “Congrats. You look wonderful.”
“I feel wonderful, and I can see my toes again. It was a hard labour, but quick, thank God. I’ve already had a nap. This is Anneka, and one of you needs to take her because I need to pee.”
Which is how Tansy ended up with a newborn baby in her arms and laughter dancing on the air.
Thank goodness there were enough sound-minded adults around that one of them—Zach’s mother?—guided Tansy to a chair and got her settled. Which meant she got to examine tiny fingers and a wrinkled-up nose and tiny puckered lips without worrying about dropping her precious cargo.
Sydney settled on the arm beside her with Petra to her right.
“Pretty baby,” Sydney offered quietly.
“She’s beautiful.” Anneka wiggled, and Tansy tightened the bundling around her. “Did you do the delivery?”
“I did, little as I was needed.” Sydney offered a grin. “I think Zach’s been studying because when they called me at three a.m., he gave a complete report of dilation and contraction timing, and it wasn’t Julia’s doing because she was too busy swearing to answer the questions I asked.”
“My big brother always was an overachiever,” Petra offered dryly. “He caught the baby, didn’t he?”
“Absolutely. Best catcher positioning I’ve seen in a long time.” Sydney was still grinning. “Didn’t even twitch out of place when Julia started describing in graphic detail what she would do if he came near her in the next while even thinking about sex.”
Tansy snorted.
Petra made a vomiting noise. “Enough. It’s funny and all, but he is my brother, and ick on the sex talk.”
“You want to hold her?” Tansy asked, lifting Anneka toward her auntie.
“In a bit. You enjoy for now.” Petra glanced over her shoulder at the filled room. “Once you give her up, you won’t get her back for a while. Not with this horde.”
It was a full room. With Julia’s three sisters and their spouses, Zach and Petra’s parents, and the three of them, there wasn’t space to turn around.
Which was fine. Tansy shoved down everything else she’d been worrying about and focused on the very good thing in the here and now.
A tiny new life coming into a world of love.