Page 6 of The Cowboy's Miracle Baby

“Do you have any idea who wrote that?”

“No…” Shaken, Cami stared down at the child, who balled her tiny fist against her mouth. “Wh-what am I supposed to do with her?”

“Keep her!” Eloise shouted, tugging at her father’s coat.

“She’s not a doll, darlin’. We can’t just… keep her. We… should probably call the authorities. Abandoned child. This is a matter for child services, I’d guess.”

“Child services? You mean a social worker? Foster care?” Cami shuddered. “And it’s almost seven thirty. I’m sure the closest social services offices up in Billings are long closed. And the local sheriff… what’s he going to do with her? Stick her in a… a jail cell? Let her sleep it off?”

Gus was staring at the baby seemingly as bothered by all of this as she was. “I don’t think we have much—”

“The note saidyoushould take her,” Eloise interjected, her distressed gaze traveling back and forth between them. “AndIfound her. So, she’s our baby, too.”

Gus wrapped an arm around his daughter. “This baby isn’t Ms. Hardesty’s responsibility. Or ours. At least she won’t be after we turn her over to the proper authorities.”

Turn her over. Just like that? Like one would take a lost shoe to the lost and found? To be mixed up with all the other lost things. And that would be that. This child would no longer be her problem, or his.

But… she was her problem because they’d found her. Whether the universe had deemed it so, or the child’s mother, it had become Cami’s immediate, very urgent problem.

Fleetingly, Cami thought of all the lost animals she’d chased, rescued, and cared for over the years. Abandoned kittens or stray dogs in need of care. Like the two pups her sister, Shay, and Cooper Lane had found up in the mountains and brought home only a few months ago, Poppy and Pippa, who were now blissfully integrated into their ranch family.

But ababy.

A mystery child. That was different. Totally different.

The words from the note rang in her ears.I know you’ll do what’s best for her. I trust you.

Why? Who left that note and what made her think thatshewould know what to do with this baby? Was it someone she knew or had known years ago? A student? A friend? She couldn’t fathom anyone she knew abandoning a child this way.

But she also knew the times were hard and there were a million reasons why something like this could happen. Still, she felt angry for this child for what she was about to go through because she was now alone in the world.

For her very first Christmas.

“Maybe whoever left her knew I had a big family; knew I’d have help if I took her home. It’s too late tonight to make any decisions. I’m gonna take her home and we’ll figure something else out in the morning.”

“I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”

“Maybe not. But this isn’t her fault. Look, I’m… It’s the end of a very long week—semester—and I’m probably not thinking clearly about any of this, but I know one thing. I can’t just ditch this baby tonight. She’s already been left once, and I won’t do that to her again. At least not tonight.”

“You sure about this?”

Gus Claymore seemed to have a serious resting face, even when he wasn’t looking at her like she was crazy. Which randomly made her wonder how often he smiled.

“Do you have a better idea?” she asked.

His gaze flicked to his daughter who seemed to be, of the three of them, the surest of the right thing to do. “I’ll drive you,” he said. “There’s no car seat and you can’t do that alone. Especially in this weather. We’ll stop at the store for some supplies, then I’ll drive you back home to the Hard Eight. Someone can come back for your car in the morning.”

Tightening her arms around the baby, she smiled at him. “Thank you, Mr. Claymore.”

“It’s just Gus. I’d say this night is grounds for us to be on a first-name basis, wouldn’t you?”

She swallowed thickly. “To be honest, I’m very grateful I wasn’t alone here to find her.”

Eloise slipped her hand into her father’s. “So, we’re keeping her?”

“Ms. Hardesty is. Just for tonight, though. She’s not ours to keep, darlin’.”

“Maybe she’s not anybody’s anymore,” Eloise said. “That’s so sad.”

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