Page 65 of The Cowboy's Christmas
“I hope you don’t mind,” he said as he came to a stop next to the group of five. “I was worried.”
Ty shook his head. “Of course not.” He sounded like he meant it.
Before Quinn could state his mission, Ty turned to the four people seated in chairs beneath the windows, staring curiously at Quinn.
“Quinn, this is my wife, Shelby.” A pretty brunette wearing jeans and a winter parka, she gave him a pleasant if somewhat strained nod. “My grandfather-in-law—”
“Les,” the old man said, half rising to hold out a hand. He let out a low whistle as he studied Quinn’s face. Ty rolled his eyes, then indicated the woman sitting next to his wife. “Austin’s sister-in-law, Whitney Alexander.”
“Hey,” she said, sketching a small wave. “This is a pretty awesome distraction, Ty.”
She spoke lightly, but there was marked tension in her voice. Everyone was worried about Austin’s wife and baby, and here he was, an interloper.
“This is my brother,” Ty said. “Quinn Harding.”
Quinn shifted uncomfortably, close to saying that he’d be on his way, when Ty said, “I’m really glad you came.” He sat next to his wife, who put a hand on his thigh and nodded, her expression one of deep sincerity. “You want to wait with us?”
“You’re about to be an uncle,” Shelby said encouragingly. “You should be here. The baby’s early, but the last we heard, everything looks good. She’s just impatient.”
“Sure.” He wanted to go in the worst way, to avoid encroaching on this family circle, but he couldn’t come up with a graceful way to leave.
“So, Quinn,” Les said, peering at him unabashedly. “Tell us about yourself.”
Shelby rolled her eyes, but before she could intercede, Quinn said, “What do you want to know?” He was here and he felt like he owed them some background.
“Everything. Kenny’s no longer with us, so you won’t do him any harm by talking, and it’s better to get the truth out there, rather than a lot of speculation.”
“Not that there’s notalreadyspeculation,” Whitney added. “The mystery ‘Austin Look Alike,’” she said making quotes in the air.
Shelby still looked uncomfortable, but Les and Whitney appeared interested, although not in a Carol Bingley sort of way. It seemed they wanted to know the story to straighten out rumors, and he could give them that. Maybe it was the distraction they needed, and the truth wouldn’t hurt anyone. He just hated talking about himself.
Whitney raised her eyebrows in silent encouragement, and Shelby glanced at her husband, her hand tightening on his thigh. Quinn gave her a reassuring half-smile, then began his story, explaining what he knew about his parents, that he didn’t know when his mom had told his dad, that he’d known about his brothers, had followed their careers, but had never planned to meet them. That he’d grown up tramping around ranches, where his mom would cook or do general ranch work, and then ended with a summary of his current job hauling stock.
When he finished, the group was quiet, then Whitney said, “So what now?”
A question that had been burning in his brain. What now?
“I think what Whitney means—” Shelby began in a diplomatic tone, but she never got to offer her translation, because the OB nurse rounded the corner into the waiting room and stopped in front of them.
Thankfully she was smiling.
“Mother and baby are fine. Five pounds, no ounces, fourteen inches long. Lungs are developed. She’s small, but vigorous.”
“She’s a Harding,” Ty said matter-of-factly.
“It doesn’t look like she’ll need to be transferred to Bozeman, but there’s still a chance. Doctor is taking a wait-and-see attitude.”
Whitney whipped out her phone. “I’ll text Mom. She’ll be so relieved.”
Austin’s mother-in-law, Quinn had learned, was desperately trying to find a flight back from Hawaii, where she’d been vacationing, while Ty’s three-year-old son was staying with a close friend.
Ty wrapped an arm around his wife’s shoulders, pulling her against him, and Les reached out to clap Quinn on the back.
“You Hardings are fighters.”
“Yes, sir,” Quinn said. But this Harding was feeling a need to say his goodbyes. The real family needed to be together now. He got to his feet when Whitney said something to Les and edged his way to the periphery of the group, shooting a look through the window at the flatbed truck parked under a lamppost.
Ty broke away from his wife to join Quinn. “Taking off?”
