Page 27 of Sweet Surprise

“Getting married. To help the ranch.” She gestured in her son’s direction. “And Mason.”

The kid was intent on teaching Brady how to sit on command. The dog, who’d known the command for years, played along patiently.

“He looks so happy, I can’t decide if it would be right or wrong to keep him here, letting him think this is his home.”

“Whether we do this or not, the Sweet Ranch will always be his home. His land. His roots.”

“I know,” she sighed, “but it’s still not the same as thinking this is where you belong, and then when our deal ends, he’ll be uprooted again.”

Carson took a deep breath. He’d asked himself the same question more than once and didn’t have any more answers than Jess. All he knew was that he didn’t want to make a mistake. “I’ve been thinking too. What do you think if we build you and Mason a house here on Sweet Land?

Her head tipped to one side. “I’m not sure I’m following. You mean wait to marry till there’s a house built?”

“No.” He ran his hand across the back of his neck. He was going to botch this whole thing before it had even begun. “I mean we’ll pick out a spot. Tell Mason it’s going to be his new home soon. It will take time, especially since there isn’t much money for material right now, but when we do, then you and Mason can move in.”

“Without you?”

This was the part he hated, finally getting the one woman he’d always wanted, and then having to let her go. “Yes. Maybe, if he’s still here on the ranch, still near all of us, the separation, the divorce, won’t be as hard to handle.” He didn’t dare think about how hard it would be for him to have Jess around for years to come and have to pretend he didn’t care.

“And if the ranch isn’t on its feet in a year? If the house isn’t built? What happens then?”

“I can go away for a while. I travel a lot. Our developments aren’t always in this part of Texas. As a matter of fact, at some point when we can afford ranch hands again, or when that blasted lawsuit is settled, I’ll have to do some traveling anyway. It will seem normal to Mason.”

“Normal,” she muttered softly.

His mind drifted back ten years to when he thought there was a chance he could finally win Jess over, and then she was gone. He didn’t dare let himself hope that maybe, with time, maybe… “Probably a poor choice of words.”

She almost laughed at him. “Yeah, nothing about any of this is normal.”

“I’m sorry.” He really was. About a lot of things. Starting with not having fought harder for her when he knew Todd was bad news.

“Hey.” She pushed to her feet and came over to his side, her hand on his forearm. “None of this is your fault. Not your dad, not Ray, not the mess I made of my life. None of it.”

“Part of me knows that, but part of my can’t help thinking if only…”

Her hand squeezed his arm. “Whenever I would get on an if only tirade, my mom would say,if my mother had wheels she’d be a car.”

That made him smile. “Our moms would have been good friends.”

“I think so.” Jess took a step back. “What about telling him you’re his father?”

Carson considered his words carefully. “One step at a time. As he gets used to me, I’d like to believe we’ll know the right moment to tell him.”

She nodded, her eyes following Mason as he ran across the yard, Brady loping beside him. Samson slowly inching closer to the fun. The boy’s laughter carried to them on the evening breeze.

“I used to worry so much about him,” she said softly. “That he wasn’t getting what he needed. That he wasn’t happy enough.”

“And now?”

“Look at him,” her voice caught slightly. “He’s thriving here. I guess big horses and roaming cattle are no more dangerous than taxis and buses on crowded city streets.”

A comfortable silence settled between them, broken only by the distant sound of Mason’s play.

Finally, Jess took a deep breath. “This may be the dumbest thing I’ve ever done,” she said, a wry smile tugging at her lips. “Well, maybe marrying Todd can’t be beat for the dumbest, but this may take second place. Let’s do it.”

Carson hoped his surprise wasn’t showing. He honestly thought deep down she was going to tell him to go to hell in a hand basket for even thinking of such a ridiculous idea. “You’re sure?”

“No,” she laughed lightly, “I’m not sure at all. But sometimes the most ridiculous plans make the most sense.”

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