Page 39 of Secret Baby for the Triplets

He blinks as if his own words startled him, too. “I suppose because it caught me off-guard.” He perches at my bedside. “And we didn’t know what went wrong.”

His hand curls around mine, and I draw in a quivering breath. He’s only being kind and supportive, but his touch does more to me than I want to admit. I need this human contact right now. Tears flood my eyes, and sympathy floods his face.

“It’s gonna be all right, darlin’,” he promises. “Whatever this is.”

A knock on the door prevents me from blurting out the entire sordid truth, and I’m so grateful when the doctor enters.

“Good morning, Ms. Ward.”

Toby stands to allow the doctor to look me over, her bright eyes looking into mine. “How are you feeling?”

“Better than yesterday,” I answer.

“All your results look good,” she tells me, glancing at her handheld tablet. “And the baby’s good too. There’s no reason you can’t go home today. But you really should get an OBGYN if you don’t already have one. And you’ll need prenatal vitamins. If cost is an issue?—”

“It’s not,” Toby interjects. “Get her whatever she needs. The ranch will cover it.”

I part my lips to argue but clamp them just as quickly. Who am I to protest such a generous offer? One of these guys is the father of my baby… and they are my employers.

Oh, what the hell kind of mess did I walk myself into exactly?

“All right, well, I’ll get that prescription ready and your discharge paperwork. You can get yourself ready to go.”

She leaves us alone, and Toby starts to follow her outside. “I’ll leave you to dress and call Owen to come and get us.”

“Toby…”

He pauses and eyes me from the doorway.

“I… I don’t know how to thank you for everything.”

He lingers for a moment. “Why didn’t you tell us before?” he asks quietly. “Did you know you were pregnant when you interviewed for the job?”

I lower my eyes, gulping back the stone in my throat.

Slowly, he ambles back toward the bed. “Look,” he sighs. “I get you probably didn’t want to ruin your chances of getting hired, but if you’d told us, we wouldn’t have dumped so much on you the first week. You didn’t have to endanger yourself or the baby, Emmy.”

The way he says my nickname makes my heart flutter, but I know it’s because I’m feeling vulnerable.

“I can still do the job!” I protest, aghast. “You don’t need to treat me differently!”

He studies me, that fuzzy glimmer of recognition returning to his face, and I dart my eyes down again.

Shit.I still have to be careful.

“I can tell you’re strong,” he says kindly. “But you’re growing a whole other person in you now. Don’t forget about him—or her. Your body probably can’t do what you thought you could a few months ago. Please don’t do that again. I don’t ever want to find you like that.”

My heart catches in my throat. “Do you think Brock and Owen might make me leave?” I whisper.

He shakes his head vehemently. “I wouldn’t let them if they considered it. But even Brock’s not that big of an asshole—even if he pretends to be,” he reassures me. “Just get dressed. We’ll talk about it back at the ranch.”

Flashing me a smile, he retreats into the hall, leaving me to dress alone, but I know everything’s changed. I’m going to have a hell of a time collecting their DNA with them watching every move now.

* * *

Owen keeps peering at me in the rearview mirror, and I pretend not to notice as I stare out the truck’s window. Despite the circumstances, it’s a lovely drive back to the ranch, taking in the rolling hillside toward Pine Sky.

Cattle roam freely, and we pass a llama farm. The scent of sweetgrass wafts through the open windows and curbs my slight nausea, a formation of low, gray clouds rolling in over the east.

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