Page 14 of Protective Cowboy

Long-suppressed rage surged through her like a tidal wave. “You have some nerve, Phillip,” she snapped. “I’m a better parent than you’ll ever be!”

Phillip’s expression darkened, his eyes narrowing as he glared at Autumn. “Yeah, but you were a total failure as a wife!” he spat. “At least Theresa understood what I needed in a relationship.”

Autumn felt her breath catch in her throat. Is he serious?

“Excuse me?” she choked out, her voice barely more than a whisper. “I did everything for you, Phillip. I gave up my dreams to support yours, but it was never enough. You always wanted more.”

“Ah, and there it is. The martyr act. I was wondering when you’d pull that out.” Phillip’s glacial eyes swept over her from head to toe, as if searching out every imperfection. “Acting like you’re so noble when all you ever did was hold me back. You’re responsible for everything that went wrong between us.”

Autumn felt tears prickling at the corners of her eyes. She wiped angrily at them, hating that she was giving Phillip the satisfaction of knowing how much his words hurt her.

“Mommy?” Jayden’s trembling voice cut through the tension like a knife. Both Autumn and Phillip turned to look at their son, who’d crept up behind her. He was staring at them with wide, frightened eyes.

“I’m sorry I made you cry,” he whispered, his lower lip quivering. “Daddy told me to sneak away as a prank. He said it would be funny to scare you a little, and then we’d all eat ice cream together.”

Autumn swallowed hard as her protective instincts surged to the forefront.

She kneeled down in front of Jayden, wrapping him in a tight hug. “It’s not your fault, sweetie,” she murmured into his hair. “I’m not mad at you, okay? I just… I was just worried about you, that’s all.”

Jayden nodded against her chest, sniffling softly. As Autumn held him close, she couldn’t help but think about how unfair it was for Phillip to waltz back into their lives and cause so much pain and turmoil.

“I’m glad to see you found Jayden. Is everything all right here?”

Autumn shuddered with relief at hearing Matt’s deep voice. She turned her head and saw him striding toward them.

“Everything’s fine, Officer,” Phillip replied smoothly, plastering on a smile that made Autumn’s stomach churn. “We’re just having ourselves a family reunion. I haven’t seen my kid in months, ya know?” He sighed deeply and shook his head with convincing melancholy. “I’ve really missed my little man.”

Just like usual, Phillip wanted to convince everyone that Autumn was the villain here.

But Matt didn’t seem impressed. His hazel eyes studied Autumn, and she saw concern and dawning anger there. “Are you okay, Autumn?”

Chapter Four

Fauxmance

Matt approached Jenna’s Java, his eyes scanning the crowded street for Jayden.

The rich scents of baking cookies mingled with freshly brewed coffee. His stomach rumbled again, reminding him it was nearly lunchtime, and he’d only had a cup of coffee for breakfast.

A pair of raised voices caught his attention. He stopped dead in his tracks as he spotted Autumn kneeling on the sidewalk in front of Jenna’s Java, Jayden in her arms.

The boy’s safe! Matt let out a sigh of relief and radioed in the good news.

Then his senses went on high alert as he took in the tableau.

A big silver-haired man loomed over mother and son, a disgruntled expression on his face. He wore a crumpled blue linen blazer over a button-down shirt and expensive pants with polished leather shoes. His clothes made him stand out in a crowd of festival goers wearing jeans, shorts, and t-shirts.

Matt took an instant dislike to the stranger. He was standing way too close to Autumn, clearly trying to intimidate her.

Something was clearly wrong here. Her body language was tense. Her expression wavered between fear and anger as she glared up at him.

Did this SOB try to kidnap Jayden? Matt’s protective instincts surged to the fore.

He strode over.

“I’m glad to see you found Jayden. Is everything all right here?” he asked, scanning Jayden with a professional eye.

He was happy to see the boy appeared upset but unhurt.

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