Page 34 of Caught By A Cowboy

“Honestly, the place looks incredible. I love the lights and the pumpkin patch, you’ve thought of everything.” Isabel sings her praises as she looks around.

“I had a lot of help.” Maddison looks up at me and smiles, and when Isabel and Eli get called away by Jean, her smile turns to stone.

“Will youstoptouching me like that? You’re gonna give it away. Daphne has already told me I look peaky,” she whisper-yells at me.

“You look phenomenal.” I look over her shoulder and check out her ass in that denim skirt.

“You don’t think Tabitha from the surgery has blabbed, do you?” She chews on her thumb.

“She can’t, patient confidentiality, remember?”

“Come on, Jace, in this town? Are you really relying on that?” Her expression proves she’s unconvinced.

“Tabitha won’t have told anyone, she’s professional. Don’t stress, it’s not good for the baby.” My hand goes to touch her there again, but she swats it away.

“Will you stop?” This time she’s smiling like she can’t help it, and it makes me want to throw her over my shoulder and take her somewhere more private.

“Maddison, where did you get this bunting from?” Alice Walker calls over to her, and she quickly kisses me on the cheek before she charges off to be sociable. I spend the best part of half an hour resting against one of the beams and watching the woman who’s carrying my child work the room. Folk seem to naturally warm to her, she’s bursting with positive energy despite the fact that she’s been feeling rotten the past few weeks. And all I’ve been able to do is hold back her hair and feel helpless. I hate the fact she’s had to suffer the sickness and add to that how tired she’s been, I don’t know how she’s managed to be so creative and throw this together.

“Well, she’s a better decorator than she is a cook. Girl did good.” Grayson comes to stand beside me, looking at the same scene I am.

“She did, didn’t she?” I smile.

“When’s she due?” he asks.

“Due, what?” I spin my head around defensively.

“To drop that baby she’s havin’.” He smiles knowingly as he watches her.

“I don’t know what?—”

“Come on, I may be old, but I ain’t a fool.”

“How d’ya guess.” I sigh when I realize there ain’t no use in pretending.

“I don’t know…the fact she can’t seem to keep anything down, how you practically have an aneurysm every time she picks something up, and I don’t know if you realize it, but you’rewalking around this place like you finally discovered what Garth Brooks has been singing about,” he chuckles.

“She’s only seven weeks, she don’t want no one knowing yet, so–”

“Your secret’s safe with me, son.” He pats me on the back.

“You think I’ll be good at it?” I ask him before he can move on. Grayson has known me my whole life, he was best friends with my father, and for that reason, I’ll always value his opinion.

“Why you askin’ me? I got no kids.”

“I wouldn’t say that, you’ve raised a few boys to be men in that bunkhouse over the years,” I remind him

“I think you’ll be just fine, especially if you're anything like ya old man.” He slaps my shoulder before moving on, and when Maddison bounces back over to me and wraps her arms around my neck, I can feel the excitement emanating from her.

“Everyone is loving this, Jace. The band is great too. Isn’t the band great?” She can barely keep still

“The band’s great,” I agree, not giving a shit about the band or what anyone thinks, all that matters is how happy she looks right now.

“Alice has asked me if I’d help decorate the hall for her grandaughter’s party next month, and Daphne wants me to do a Thanksgiving display in the salon.”

“That's great, darlin’, but don’t you think you're taking on a little much? I don’t want you over–”

“Oh, Jace, I’m pregnant, not ill,” she whispers, “I had a lot of fun doing this and I can work it around my jobs here.”

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