Chapter 43
Chapter Forty-Three
Emma
“ I ’m sure that he’ll be just fine,” I said to Mason as we headed back to town, two Styrofoam containers bouncing on my lap as he drove. “I don’t blame him for wanting to cut out for a while. I can’t imagine what he’s going through—and no one has been there for him.”
“I thought Brittany was in town…” Mason’s voice trailed off. “I feel for the kid. I had no idea what he was going through—and all this time, I’ve been so hard on him.”
“It’s okay,” I reached over, grabbing his hand. “We just have to find him—not only for his sake, but also for Jess.”
“I know,” Mason nodded. “And we’re gonna find him.”
We rode the rest of the way in silence and as we turned down the driveway of the cabin, I saw Jackson’s patrol car parked outside with the lights on. My heart sank at the sight of Jess, her entire demeanor sullen as she spoke to Jackson on the front porch. I took a deep breath as I put it in park, and we both slid out.
“I don’t know where he is,” Jess sniffled, her voice carrying across the yard. “And I don’t think he would’ve left all the way for Arkansas…”
“What about his friends?” Jackson asked her, his own voice sounding more defeated than I expected. “He’s got to be somewhere around here.”
“He might just be alone somewhere,” Jess commented, plopping down in one of the wooden rocking chairs. “He’s like one of those people who have a lot of friends, but none of them are close—and he’s been pushing me out.”
“So, you think that maybe… Maybe he wasn’t in the best frame of mind?” Jackson was dancing around the subject, but I knew what he meant.
“I think he was handling things the best he could,” Jess snapped at him. “And he had a lot of plans for the future. He was looking forward to this next rodeo season, and I don’t think he would’ve hurt himself.”
“Okay,” Jackson said, running his fingers along his jawline. “I’m just trying to cover everything, and honestly, you’re the only person who seems to know him.”
As I got closer, I saw the tears running down Jess’s face. I didn’t hesitate and rushed for her, wrapping her up in my arms. “It’s gonna be okay.”
“I just wanna know that he’s okay,” Jess sobbed. “His dad was such a bad guy—what if someone took him the same way they took you?” I looked to Mason immediately, whose face was broken into deep lines of concern.
And clearly, I saw that he was on the same page as Jess.
“I thought the henchmen had been picked up?” I demanded, my voice straining. “Is that true?”
“Well, the Rangers picked up a couple guys… But we don’t know who else was involved with it. Who knows how far Graham’s reach was,” Jackson grimaced. “All we can really do is hope that he turns up. Lucas is going to search th e ranch, just in case he wants to hide out somewhere out there.”
“Yeah,” Mason nodded. “But Jess, if that’s all you can think of, then we’ll let you have the rest of the evening. Emma will stay here with you.”
Jess was quiet for a few beats. “But shouldn’t we be out looking for him?”
I took a deep breath and turned to her, my heart hurting at the worry in her face. “If you want to keep looking, I can take you out and we can drive around.”
Her lip turned downward. “He’s not going to be in plain sight.”
“No, but it’s really all we can do right now,” I said softly, looking to Mason for some guidance.
“She’s right, Jess. We have no idea what he’s up to, or if he’ll show back up. I think he probably just needed some air with everything that’s going on in his life—but in the event that this does have something to do with his father, it would be best if you and Emma stay here. I’ll be back later this evening. Besides, I’m sure you and Emma have a lot to talk about,” he added, shooting me a wink.
“I’m not talking to her about all that without you,” I reasoned, shaking my head.
“I think you should,” he said quickly, waving Jackson in the direction of his cruiser. “I think it’ll allow you two to bond even more.”
“What is he talking about?” Jess nudged me, her dark brows furrowed as she looked up at me.
I shot Mason a look and then wrapped my arm around Jess’s shoulder. “Let’s go inside, and I’ll tell you.”
“Love y’all!” Mason called as he climbed into the Bronco. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
“Love you,” Jess and I both replied simultaneously. I reached for the handle of the door, and opened it, the warm amber scent of the cabin comforting. I didn’t want to talk to Jess about the gender or moving in without Mason…
But then again, I knew that there would be more times in the future that Mason would be off, and I would have to handle things without him.
“So… What did you want to tell me?” Jess wrang her hands as I shut and locked the door behind us. “Because I hope it’s that you’re having a girl.”
I laughed, the joy returning despite everything. “Well… I suppose you’re in luck then.”
Her eyes went wide as I waited for it to sink in. “Oh. My. Gosh!” Jess squealed, nearly bouncing across the room to wrap me up in a hug. “I can’t believe it—a girl. I’m gonna have a little sister. You know,” she looked up at me with tears in her eyes. “I always thought that I would have a sister. I don’t know why… I just did—and now I do.”
My own eyes grew moist as I gave her a tight squeeze. “You’re going to be the best sister, Jess. You really are.”
“Thank you.” She loosened her arms around me and wiped her eyes with the sleeves of her flannel shirt. “I just can’t believe that Dad finally found someone.”
My heart skipped a beat, and I wasn’t sure if it was the anxiety of talking to her about me moving in, or Jess referring to me as her dad’s someone. “You’ve really accepted me, and that means so much.” My voice came out soft as I took a seat on the couch, the exhaustion of the day finally settling in.
“I’ve always wanted Dad to find someone like you,” Jess continued, taking a seat across from me. “And I’m glad that he has… And I’m glad you’re pregnant, so he can’t just push you away like he does with everyone else. He’s just as bad as Lucas,” she added, a frown on her face. “I never know wh at’s going on with either of them—and they’re both like my dads.”
I nodded, leaning back into the cushion. “They are both strong-willed and hard-headed. A lot of men like them are, but I know that your dad has so much love for you, and I don’t think that anything will ever change that.”
Jess smiled. “Yeah, though I think I drive him crazy sometimes.”
“I’m sure I will, too,” I laughed, shrugging my shoulders. “Especially if I move in.” I waited for Jess’s reaction, but she didn’t really have one. She tipped her head back as she laughed, reaching for the remote.
“You basically already live here,” she finally said, hitting the power button. “Do you wanna watch a movie? It’s not that late.”
“Yeah, a movie sounds good, but…” my voice trailed off as I ran my hands down my legging clad thighs. “I was actually hoping to talk about the one last thing that Mason wanted me to mention…”
She narrowed her eyes at me. “There’s more?”
I nodded, shifting as I brought my legs into a crisscross position in front of me. “Yeah, and it’s kind of a big thing.”
Jess looked worried. “Well, I hope it’s a good thing…”
“I think it is and so does your dad, but I don’t want to do it without your approval. I think that it’s important that we talk through a lot of the big relationship changes between Mason and myself. I don’t ever want to do something that you’re not comfortable with.”
She blew out a sigh, her face relaxing. “So are y’all getting married or something?”
I wish.
“No, not right now anyway,” I said. “But today after the doctor’s appointment, your dad asked if I would want to move in. Having the baby in one place would make things a lot easier… And I agree.”
Her face scrunched in a way that made my heart sink. “So… He wants you to move in because of the baby? Not because he just wants you to move in?”
My heart did a flipflop in my chest, suddenly second-guessing myself. “I think he wants me to move in because we’re becoming more of a family, not just because it would make the logistics of having a baby easier.”
She nodded, her eyes dropping to her hands. “I just don’t want you to move out once you move in. It would be like getting a mom, and then having her ripped away all over again.”
The vulnerability nearly knocked me right over. “Oh, Jess,” I said, my voice thickening with emotion. “I promise you, no matter what happens, I will always be here for you.”