Page 29 of The Rancher's Secret Son

Nick shook his head. “I just learned about Cody last week and I just spent the weekend with her in Houston getting to know him. This family is going to love him. He is smart, happy, a great kid. He’s three years old and yes, he does look like my pictures when I was that age. He’s a Milan, there’s no mistaking it.”

His father barely looked up, still studying Cody’s picture.

“Dad, I have more pictures.” Nick swiped the screen and scrolled through other pictures of Cody laughing at the camera.

“Nick, we’ve got to break this gently to your mother, but she is going to want this little boy in her life in the worst way.” His dad looked up. “This is our first and only grandchild, Nick. And he couldn’t look more like a Milan.”

Nick was so relieved, but at the same time, he knew his dad’s acceptance meant his parents were going to fight to get Cody into the family. Nick glanced around the room, remembering being in the same room while his dad had argued and pressured him to marry Karen and forget Claire. Nick made a silent vow to himself that when Cody was grown, he’d never interfere in his life the way his dad had interfered in his own.

“I’ve invited Claire to bring Cody to Dallas this week. She’ll be here Tuesday and I’m taking them out to my ranch. One night while they’re here I thought I’d have the family over to meet him.”

“You’ve got to marry her, Nick. The sooner the better.”

“At this point she isn’t interested in marrying me. Her grandfather isn’t well. Her mother has passed away and her grandmother is getting older. Claire has control of the real estate business totally and she’s been very successful and built it up. She has three offices and seventy employees in Houston, and she doesn’t want to leave there. She’s built a big, fine mansion in an exclusive area, and Cody and her grandmother live with her. Her grandfather is in assisted living, but she hopes to bring him home. She told me there have been no other men in her life because she hasn’t had time for a social life, and I can see that.” The words rushed out, like an eruption. But he wanted to lay everything out on the table right away.

He wondered whether his father even heard him; he was still going through the pictures. He reminded himself that his dad could do two things at once and not miss a word of conversation around him.

Finally his father looked up. “Go get your mother. You can tell her when you get in here where she can see his picture. I know why you showed it to me first. Nick, can you print a couple of these out for us, so we can keep some?”

“I asked Claire to print a few out, so I have some for you. But, Dad, that’s why I’m giving you an iPad. I’ve already loaded all those pictures on it for you and Mom to look at.”

“That’s dandy, Nick. That’s just fine. Thank you,” his father said, his gaze returning to Cody’s picture. “Our first grandchild,” he said with awe in his voice. “Three years—damn, if only we had known.”

“You know why we didn’t.” Nick couldn’t keep from saying and his father waved his hand at him without looking up. “Go get your mother. She is going to be so happy over this. Nick, we’ve never even met Claire.”

“No, Dad, you haven’t, but you will this week.” Clinging to his patience he bit back pointing out that they hadn’t wanted to meet Claire. “I’ll get Mom.”

His mother looked puzzled when she returned and Judge Milan motioned her to come sit beside him. He took her hand. “Nick has some good news that will surprise you as well as shock you.”

Nick went through telling her in the same way he had told his father.

“Oh, my word, you fathered a child out of wedlock!” his mother said, frowning and sounding devastated. Then, before he could respond, her eyes grew soft. “We have a grandchild.” Then she stared at the iPad.

He gave her a moment to digest it all.

“Oh, my word, Nick. This is a picture of you.”

“No, it’s my son and Claire is his mother,” Nick said. “His name is Cody Nicholas.”

“She gave him your name.” Evelyn didn’t look up from the pictures as she spoke. “He’s definitely your son. We’re grandparents and we get to meet him this week?” His mother’s voice filled with excitement. She looked up at Nick. “I’m a grandmother. Oh, Nick, I’m so thrilled.”

“I’m glad, Mom,” he said.

It was another hour before he was ready to leave. He left the iPad with pictures of Cody with them and said he would arrange for a family dinner on whatever night they could get the most members of the family together. As he kissed his mother’s cheek and started out of the room, his dad got up.

“I’ll walk you to the car, Nick,” he said, catching up with Nick.

Nick wasn’t surprised. He knew his father had a purpose in walking him to the car.

As soon as they were out of the house, his dad cleared his throat. “Nick, think about asking Claire to marry you. She may be wealthy, comfortable, successful, but she doesn’t have the wealth our family does. You can give her a sum that would win the cooperation of most any woman and you can set up a trust fund for Cody, plus give him the Milan name. That will be difficult for her to turn down.”

“Dad, I hurt her badly once. I don’t want to do it again. If I’d done what I should have in the first place, I would have known about Cody. But that’s in the past now. I’m not going to coerce her into marriage.”

“It isn’t coercion to offer what I’m talking about. It’s a fabulous, life-altering gift. Be smart about this, Nick. You have the highest political ambitions and we’re getting a lot of powerful people lined up to support you. Don’t blow this now. That little boy is a Milan, our grandchild. I can’t tell you how thrilled your mother and I both are.”

“I’m glad for that. You’re going to be more thrilled when you meet him. He’s adorable.”

“Nick, if she would marry you, it would kill any breath of scandal attached to Cody. Think about it,” his dad urged, giving him one of his patented looks.

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