Page 113 of Nobodys Baby But Mine (Chicago Stars 3)

“You beautiful ladies told me I could stop by for some of that fried chicken, so I took you at your word.” He leaned against the post Cal had painted only a month earlier. “How’s the little guy doing today?” With a familiarity that indicated he’d done it before, he reached out and patted Jane’s belly.

Cal had him off the porch and flat on the ground within seconds.

The shotgun blast nearly knocked out his eardrums. Bits of dirt flew into his face and stung his bare arms. Between the noise and the fact that the dirt had temporarily blinded him, he didn’t have time to land his punch, and Kevin managed to roll out from beneath him.

“Damn, Bomber, you’ve done more damage to me this spring than happened all last season.”

Cal swabbed the dirt from his eyes and lurched to his feet. “Keep your hands off her.”

Kevin looked peeved and turned to Jane. “If he acted this way to you, it’s no wonder you left him.”

Cal gritted his teeth. “Jane, I’d like to talk to you. Now!”

His mother—his sweet, reasonable mother—stepped in front of her as if Jane were her kid instead of him! And his old man wasn’t helping any. He just stood there looking at his mom as if he didn’t understand anything.

“What are your intentions toward Jane, Cal?”

“That’s between the two of us.”

“Not exactly. Jane has family now to look after her.”

“You’re damn right she does! I’m her family.”

“You didn’t want her, so right now Annie and I are her family. That means we’re the ones looking out for her best interests.”

He saw that Jane’s eyes were glued to his mother’s face, and he took in her stunned, happy expression. He remembered the cold sonovabitch who’d raised her, and in spite of everything—the shotgun, his mother’s desertion, even Kevin Tucker—he couldn’t help but feel glad that she’d finally found herself a decent parent. If only she hadn’t found his decent parent.

But his warmth cooled as his mother gave him the same I-mean-business look that, twenty years earlier, had meant turning over his car keys.

“Are you going to honor those wedding vows you made to Jane, or are you still planning to get rid of her after the baby’s born?”

“Stop making it sound like I’ve got a contract out on her!” He jabbed his thumb at Tucker. “And could we discuss this in private, without Bozo here listening in?”

“He stays,” Annie interjected. “I like him. And he cares about you, Calvin. Don’t you, Kevin?”

“I sure do, Mrs. Glide. I care a lot.” Tucker shot him a Jack Nicholson smirk, then turned to Lynn. “Besides, if he doesn’t want Jane, I do.”

Jane had the gall to smile.

But his mother had always been single-minded when she needed to be. “You can’t have it both ways, Cal. Either Jane’s your wife, or she’s not. What’s it going to be?”

He’d reached the end of his rope, and his temper snapped. “All right! No divorce. We’ll stay goddamned married!” He glared at the three women. “There! Are you finally satisfied? Now I want to talk to my wife!”

His mother flinched. Annie shook her head and clucked her tongue. Jane gave him a look of utter contempt and swept into the house, taking the tabloid newspaper with her.

The screen door slammed, and Kevin let out a low whistle. “Damn, Bomber, maybe instead of watching all those game films, you should have been reading a few books on female psychology.”

He knew he’d blown it, but he also knew he’d been pushed past the point of reason. They’d publicly humiliated him, making him look like a clown in front of his wife. With a furious glare at all of them, he spun on his heel and stalked away.

Lynn wanted to cry as she watched him disappear. Her heart went out to him, this stubborn oldest son who’d also been her play companion. He was furious with her, and she could only hope she was doing the right thing and that someday he would understand.

She expected Jim to rush after Cal. Instead, he walked the rest of the way to the porch, but he turned to Annie instead of her. Knowing his feelings about her mother, she waited for his customary display of belligerence, only to be surprised.

“Mrs. Glide, I’d like permission to take your daughter for a walk.”

She caught her breath. This was the first time Jim had come to the house since that night two weeks ago when she’d turned him down. In the days that followed, she’d known she’d done the right thing, but at night when her defenses were down, she’d wished it could have been different. Never had she expected him to swallow his pride enough to repeat his performance as the polite suitor.

Annie, however, didn’t seem to find anything odd about it. “You stay in sight of the house,” she warned him.

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