Page 66 of Operation: Return

Dominic gave a salute and strode away back toward the ambulances. Cole caught sight of Erica standing next to Teddy. She was holding Pete, cradling him close. He wanted to forgive her. He really did. He wanted to walk back there and say he could understand why she’d held back.

But he couldn’t do it. She’d waited to tell him until she’d realized she couldn’t do everything alone. She’d looked him in the eye in the barn and said Pete’s father was dead. And that was after she’d come close to telling him she believed him. She’d known he was Taylor and still lied to him.

Cole shoved away, closing his eyes from the vision of Erica bathed in the glow of the lights. Closing his eyes from the desire to be part of something he had no business wanting. He wasn’t cut out to be a family. He wasn’t even real. How could he ever be a father, especially when the boy’s mother didn’t want him.

ChapterTwenty-Five

Cole finished his morning chores as a car pulled into the drive, sending the dogs into a frenzy. After everything that had gone on the day before, he patted his side to reassure himself he was armed and slowly headed for the wide-open door of the barn.

A yell that sounded anything but hostile came from the front yard and Lacy’s unmistakable laugh stopped Cole short. Conner and Lacy were finally home. He headed for the front and helped Sam calm the dogs to give Teddy and Edwyn a moment with Conner first.

The man he’d looked up to for years stood outside the little red car that had been absent from the lot for so many months he’d begun to think Conner might never come back. Junior came from inside the ranch house, followed by Brendon.

“Good to see you back,” Brendon called from the porch.

“It’s good to be back. We just passed the Lakely place on our way in. It’s burned all the way to the road. The barn is carcass. Terrible.”

“Maybe it is, maybe it’s not.” Junior clenched his fingers tightly and released them quickly, an action Cole hadn’t seen him do in quite some time. “Now that the dangerous old house and barn are gone, it would be a good place to buy and settle. For families.”

Junior’s thoughts hit Cole like a punch in the stomach. He’d kept himself awake the entire night with thoughts about Pete and Erica. She’d been through so much. Just as much as he had. She had scars as deep as he did. Yes, she’d kept his son from him and they would have to work their way through that, but there were other issues. His living arrangements were a big roadblock.

Erica might not want to live permanently on the ranch where her son was abducted, and she might not want her son exposed on a daily basis to people who were very scarred and working through some pretty traumatic stuff. She had every right to want to protect their son from that. But he couldn’t avoid living here and didn’t want to.

So, in a way, he’d let go of Erica last night. But if Connor bought the ranch next door, a place that was separate from Wayside where he could simply ride his horse to work every day, but his family could live without the cameras and rules inherent in living on a ranch like Wayside, then maybe there was hope.

Connor took a deep breath and slowly looked over everything. “We’ve talked about buying that land for years. I looked at it when it first came on the market, but I didn’t have the time or money to invest in such an old place.”

They’d had more cabins moved in just a few months before, right after Junior had gotten married so there would be larger options for any of the men who married if they were successful in their mission. That was all dependent on the women they regretted letting get away. “There’s always these cabins.” Cole jabbed his thumb toward the new housing. “We could have them moved. You’d still need to worry about water and electricity, that kind of thing, but at least you’d have structures for now.”

Connor lifted one side of mouth in a half smile. “Didn’t expect an idea like that out of you, Cole.” He touched his hat. “Good to come home to some positive change.”

There would be too much negative change to go over in the very near future so Cole kept his feeling to himself. A laugh came from the end of the row of cabins and Pete raced out from the end, then froze the moment he saw Connor.

Connor looked at him, then at Cole and back again. Understanding flashed in his eyes. “You here for the summer?” Connor asked Pete, his voice changing subtly.

Pete looked terrified and raced toward Cole and hid behind his leg. He dislodged the boy and lowered to look him in the eye. “Pete, I’d like you to meet my boss. He owns this ranch. His name is Conner Kincade. That pretty lady there is his . . .”

“I’m Lacy,” she finished for him and smiled at Pete. “Have you been able to ride any horses?”

Pete shrugged and stepped closer to Cole, obviously still too shy to speak much. “I did before we had to stop.”

Conner frowned and headed toward the house as if the mention of what had gone on was his cue to return to work. More likely, he wanted to relieve Edwyn of the job. Lacy hung back slightly, her gaze clinging to Pete.

Cole had never considered that Lacy was almost through the years when women had children. She’d married Connor when they were young and divorced when they were still young. They were both nearing forty now.

Erica appeared from her row of cabins and froze at the sight of Pete clinging to him. He wondered if she’d told Pete what she’d told him. Most likely not. There was no need to if he was going walk away like he had. Why hurt the boy? He certainly didn’t want to.

“Lacy, this is Erica. She’s been helping to clear your desk of the mountain of paperwork for the last week.” He lifted Pete into his arms, memorizing the weight of the boy who might not be with him for long.

Pete hugged his neck again like he had the night before and Cole didn’t resist the urge to hug him back. This was how dads felt. This urge to protect and care for another person went deeper than love, as deep as a soul. Forged the moment he’d heard this boy was his, and maybe even before.

Erica stepped forward and forced a smile. “I’ve been working in Teddy’s office. You’ll find that everything that was supposed to go to you got dumped there. I don’t think anyone wanted to disturb your actual office.”

Lacy laughed. “That and I’m the only one with a key. For security, I don’t give it to anyone. I’d bet Teddy will love getting his office back. Want to help me box everything up and move it to my cabin?”

“You live in your office?” Erica’s mouth dropped open.

“No, I live upstairs in the ranch house. As does Teddy and Conner. There’s room for a few more, but mostly we just leave each other alone because we see each other all day.”