Chapter Eighteen
Ben
Finally, after two weeks of us being apart, I managed to get back home. It was only for a short break before I had to go back. Dan had gone over Scarlett’s decision and appeared with Makas to keep her company, so she and Dad could survive at least a day without me.
I was hurrying to Ginger and her mom’s salon to see her before she closed. It was pretty late already, so she might have closed, but I wanted to try and surprise her. If I didn’t find her there, I’d probably just call her so she could come out. I wanted to have a talk with her mother properly before I showed up at her doorstep asking her to lend me her daughter for a night out.
But by the time I got there, it was with disappointment to see that the salon was closed. I parked my car and got out, and stepped up to the door, but I couldn’t see any lights on behind the blinds.
“Damn,” I muttered, feeling regretful.
It only lasted for a moment, though, and I started the walk toward Ginger’s home as I pulled my phone from my pocket to call her. But I’d only walked a few feet when I heard shouting voices, and looked up.
At first, all I could see was a guy harassing a woman. I started to jog forward to interrupt, because I couldn’t just leave it alone. But when I saw who the two people were, I was immediately enraged, and I broke into a sprint. I caught Hunter and forcefully dragged him away from Ginger, the surprise probably the only reason he went so easily. I rounded him to face me, pulled back my fist, and punched him right in the face.
The first punch seemed to stun him, and I didn’t wait for him to get back his senses before I followed with another punch. By then, he’d started to fight back, but with the advantage of my first surprise attack, I managed to beat him up good. When he stopped trying to attack me, I turned my attention to Ginger.
“Let’s go,” I said urgently.
As much as I didn’t feel like I’d done enough, I wouldn’t think of going into a full out fight until you pass out brawl with Hunter with Ginger standing right there. For one thing, we weren’t still in high school where all something like that would get you was some reprimanding and a note in your record. I was banking on the hope that Hunter wouldn’t take legal action if I didn’t rough him up too much, because I could easily go overboard, and even arguing that he was harassing Ginger might not be enough help to get me out of trouble.
With Dad’s bills, I needed every bit of money I could manage to scrunch up. I had to keep my cool, if only for that.
Ginger didn’t hesitate to run to me, and when she took my hand, I rushed her over to my car. I took her to the front passenger side and opened the door for her, waited for her to climb in, then closed it behind her. I quickly rounded to my side and got in.
“Do you want to come to my place?” I asked, internally begging she would say yes, because I couldn’t bear to let her go home in her current state. Looking closely at her, she was shaking, and her eyes glistened a little.
She didn’t give a verbal answer, just nodded, and I decided it was good enough. As I started the car and drove us toward the hotel, I glanced at Hunter one last time, wanting for a moment to forget I was a responsible adult so I could go fuck him up, because he was already on his feet looking lucid.
“He saw us,” Ginger suddenly said.
I glanced over at her, not sure what she meant. “What?”
“That day, when you fucked me against the sink, in the salon. Ben, he was watching us.” Ginger’s tone was a little complicated. She sounded like she was about to cry, at the same time frustrated, and there was a tiny bit of disgust thrown in, too.
The latter, I totally agreed with, and when it sunk in for me, my hands tightened on the wheel and my foot slammed on the brakes so the car came to a complete stop.
“Fuck!” I cursed, slamming a hand on the steering wheel. My heartbeat and breathing were both up, and I leaned my head on my hand, still holding the wheel, to try and calm down. After a beat, I sat back up, deciding there was no point. “I’m gonna go beat him black and blue some more.”
Right after that declaration, I was reaching for my belt and the door at the same time so I could run back. We hadn't gone far yet, and hopefully, he hadn't run. But Ginger caught onto my arm.
“No!” she cried out. I turned to her, ready to argue, but then she went on, “No, don’t leave me, please.”
It wasn’t the reaction I expected, and I frowned at her. “Did he scare you that much?”
Her face twisted. “How disturbed do you have to be to watch two people in such an intimate moment? And that would definitely fucking bother me, Ben. He saw us!”
Her last words were up to screech levels. I could see her unraveling at the seams, and I reached for her, pulling her into a hug. With a rough sound in her throat, she fell into me gladly, clutching back at me as her body shook.
“I’m sorry I was away for so long,” I murmured into her hair, holding her close and breathing her familiar scent in. “I wanted to come back way sooner, but I only just got some time in today, and the drive took so fucking long…”
“You were there for me at just the right time, though,” she countered, her voice quieter, muffled against my shoulder. I could feel her slowly calming down as the trembling in her body decreased. “I’m so happy you came back.”
After a moment, when she was completely relaxed against me, I caught her by the shoulders and pushed her back into her seat.
“Put your seatbelt on,” I instructed as I did the same. I waited until she had it on, then held my hand out for her to take. She gave me a grateful smile that I returned, and I started driving again, slower. It was a bit awkward with her holding my hand, but she willingly accommodated what I needed without releasing me.
“What did he want from you, anyway?” I asked darkly.
She snorted. “The usual, only ten times more creepy and scary about it. Why did I pick you, why not him instead?”
I sighed. “If you and I were permanent, in a way that everybody could tell, this kind of thing wouldn’t happen. I want us to be permanent, Ginger.”
She didn’t have an immediate response to my words, but when I turned to look over at her, she was grinning at me.
“Would you be up for it?” I asked.
“Is that a rhetorical question?” she said, laughing.
I stayed serious, though. “I know things are moving fast between us, even with the two weeks I spent out of town, but is there a need for us to take things slow, anyway? And you do realize that even though we say it, we’re really not?”
“Oh,” she teased, arching an eyebrow.
“We’re already back together, Ginger,” I stated the obvious. “The only thing we haven’t done is seriously talk about it. If we can get that out of the way, I can even talk to your mom, and whatever other problem that’s in our way, we can take care of it. I’m not going to leave you this time, so trust me, okay? Please, Ginger?”
When I glanced over at her again, her expression was serious, too.
“Yes,” her voice matching her expression. “Fucking yes, Ben, I want us to really be together. I missed you the past couple weeks, and I definitely trust you. No more running or hiding from this for the both of us. After tonight, I’m yours, you’re mine, end of story.”
I didn’t expect her decisive little speech, but by the time we made it to the hotel, I was in a much better mood, and I was smiling as I eagerly led Ginger into the hotel and up to my rooms.
Chapter Nineteen
Ginger
It had been a week since Ben and I declared our relationship official. He’d even managed to talk to my mom, and while the conversation had been hilarious in a lot of ways, especially seeing how my mom had Ben cowed, it ended well. Mom forgave Ben for breaking my heart, and he swore to her just as he had to me to never break it again.
Like me, Mom believed his sincerity, and so, while things had changed, it was as if we were picking up where we’d left off four years ago.
The next step, was to let Fern know, and we had plans to do it that day.
It was a Saturday, and the whole family was out on a trip to the park, with Mom, me, Fern and Ben. I’d invited Scarlet and Dan with their son, but Ben had let me know they wanted time to themselves, so they’d be joining us another time.
Ben and I mostly just watched from a bench as Fern played around with the dogs, and Mom was with her. Ben was too nervous to go and join her this time, and he sat with me. Mom didn’t last long before she had to go into work, though. She was only there for moral support, after all. It would have to be up to us to give the news.
“Do you think she’s going to take it well?” Ben asked.
I just smiled at him, watching how he kept rubbing his hands down his thighs and his leg wouldn’t stop bouncing.
“I’m sure she’ll take it just fine,” I told him, trying to be reassuring. “She has absolutely no reason to dislike you, and the few times she did ask about her dad, it’s not like I badmouthed you in front of her. She loves you already.”
Like she knew what our conversation was about, what his insecurities were, Fern started running toward us, shouting Ben’s name the whole way. Immediately, he was on his feet, taking a few steps toward her. He had his arms ready, and she jumped into them, giggling in delight as he raised her high and spun her around. Then he held her in his arms, and listened intently as she started babbling about how awesome dogs were, and how she wanted one.
“We’ll talk about that later, sweetheart,” I said gently, taking her out of Ben’s arms and setting her down, then crouching in front of her. After a moment of standing awkwardly beside us, Ben did the same. “We have something we wanted to tell you, though.”
“What is it?” she asked with a curious tilt of her head.
“Fern, do you remember how you asked me about your daddy before?” I waited, and she nodded dutifully. I held her by the shoulders, giving her a calm smile. “Well. We wanted to wait a bit before telling you, but meet Ben. Your dad.”
Ben shot a horrified look at me, that I just rolled my eyes at.
“Really?” Fern squealed, turning to Ben with a huge grin on her face.
There was this stunned expression on his face that I couldn’t help but laugh at. Fern, reacting just as I’d thought, and secretly hoped, threw her arms around Ben’s neck and hugged him tightly. Still with that expression, he hugged her back.
“I always wanted to meet my daddy!” she chirped. Then she pulled back to give Ben one of her disarming smiles. “And I’m happy you get to be my dad because I really like you, mister. But can I call you Daddy, now?”
Ben’s expression was shifting, and he almost looked like he wanted to cry. Clearly, he’d expected it to be a difficult road to getting Fern to accept him, but I could have told him not to worry. She was a happy child, and not a particularly stubborn one most of the time.
“We have another surprise for you, too,” I said, nodding at Ben.
He cleared his throat, taking a minute to find his composure. He blinked his glistening eyes, holding back tears, and I reached for his hand to give him some comfort.
“Your mom and I really want all three of us to live together, if that’s fine with you?”
“Can we!” she squealed.
“Not yet, though,” he said, and the disappointment was instantly obvious on her face. Even Ben had to laugh. “My own dad is sick right now, and he needs me.”
“Is that why you’ve been gone a lot?”
“Yes, that’s right,” he said, nodding his head. “I need to be with him right now, but after he gets better, we can find a place to live together.”
“You won’t be coming to live with me, Mom and Grandma?” she asked innocently.
Ben and I shared a look.
“No, honey,” I was the one to say it. “We can't, but, once we get a new place, we can get a dog!”
That instantly caught her attention and had her jumping up and down in excitement. Then she went back to playing, leaving Ben and I.
“She actually took it well,” he murmured to himself as he slowly stood up.
I got up right beside him and patted him comfortingly on the shoulder.
“I told you she would be fine.”
“This is the last of it, right?”
I was confused for a moment what he was mumbling about. Then he turned to me, wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me close. Not too close, though, because we were still in public.
“Nothing else is holding us back, right? Once the issue with my dad is over with…”
“Then we can take care of our family,” I finished for him, smiling warmly up at him. “I love you.”
Ben looked stunned for a moment, then grinned down at me. “That’s the first time you’ve said that to me, you know? Since I came back.”
I thumped his shoulder, ducking my head down.
“You didn’t deserve to hear it before, but now you do,” was my simple explanation.
Ben’s arms moved from around my waist to cup my cheeks, tilting my face up and placing a chaste kiss on my lips. I smiled into the kiss, wrapping my arms loosely around his neck, reveling in our happiness.
Epilogue
Ben
Scarlett and I were just stepping out of the hotel. We were leaving it in the hands of the management, and the new staff we’d managed to hire.
“When do you think Dad will come back?” she asked with a groan. “It should be soon, right?”
“What right do you have to fucking complain,” I retorted. “There are people around to take care of the place, you don’t need to keep going there if you don’t want to.”
“But one of us has to be there,” she said defensively. “To protect the place.”
I just sighed and shook my head at her, rolling my eyes and ignoring her pout.
We broke off as we got into our respective cars. Scarlett was going with her son and husband, while I was driving by myself, out to the house I’d built for Ginger and Fern. It had been an uphill battle just managing that much, and in so short a time. Not even a year after we told Fern that I was her dad, a lot of things had changed. The greatest of all, was that Ginger, Fern and I finally got to live together.
For the past couple weeks, we’d been setting up the house, and it was finally ready for all three of us to move into. I’d had Ginger and Fern go ahead of me so I could finally check myself out of the hotel.
The drive wasn’t so long, and in no time we arrived. The distance from town meant Ginger wouldn’t be making walks at night, and I was all for that. Scarlett and Dan arrived a moment behind me, and they followed me into the house.
“Seriously,” Scarlett persisted. “What did Dad say? He didn’t tell me anything!”
“Right after the doc declared him recovered, he told me he wanted to come back, because his girlfriend, the whole reason he moved so far in the first place, dumped him the moment he had the heart attack because, like you, she was worried about the hospital bills.” The name we’d gotten from the doc had been more complicated, but according to Dad, that was what happened.
Scarlett sighed. “Well, I can't fault her. I thought it too. But it’s fine.”
“You’re okay with him coming back?” I asked to clarify.
She shrugged. “Sure. He’s still Dad, after all.”
“Fine,” I said, nodding. “If you’re okay with it, then I guess I am, too. He’ll probably be back by next week.”
Dan laughed, bouncing little Makas in his arms. “This family sure is growing at a fast pace!”
“No, no,” Scarlett countered. “It’s more like, it’s always been this big, and everyone is just coming together now.”
“True,” I said, shrugging.
We walked into the kitchen, and Fern came in from the backdoor, barreling right at me with Ginger behind her and a puppy on their heels. I picked my little girl up in my arms and twirled her around, holding her up high, before settling her properly in my arms, laughing at the enthusiastic puppy trying to bark at me.
“And how are both of my girls, hmm?”
Ginger walked over to me and gave me a light peck on the mouth. “You girls are doing just fine, but we’re both getting a little hungry.”
I smiled at the subtle prompt, setting Ginger down.
“Dan,” I called, moving over to the fridge. “It’s the guys cooking dinner tonight, so get over here.”
He sighed, resigned, as he handed Makas over to Ginger as he came over to me.
This wasn’t the first time we’d gathered like this, but it was the first time in my new house. While Dan and I got to working, Scarlett was out in the back yard with Ginger and Fern, marveling at all the details we’d put in. I hadn't had a chance to see the full effect yet. We’d set up the porch wide and hung up a bunch of little lights, along with an outdoor dining table. Because it was a warm summer night, one of the few left before we hit the fall and Fern started going to school, we would be dining out.
Once we were done, we set the food up and everybody sat down to eat, dinner table appropriate topics floating around because of the kids. Right afterwards, Scarlett took Makas upstairs to sleep in the extra bed we’d set up in Fern’s room for the times I’d end up looking after him. Fern insisted on staying up a little longer with the adults, and Ginger and I were both fine with it.
As we moved on to the wine drinking stage of dinner—with Fern getting grape juice—Dan and I shared a look.
“Scarlett,” he started, setting down his wine glass, and moving to stand in front of her, taking her glass as well and setting it down for her.
“What?” she muttered, blinking at him in confusion.
Ginger glanced at me, but I just smiled.
“You and I have been together for two years now,” he said. “So, I thought it was time I did this properly.”
He went down on one knee, holding onto her hand, running his thumb over the ring he’d given her. Scarlett gasped, her eyes widening as she put a hand over her mouth.
“Dan…”
“Scarlett,” he said again. “I’ve loved you for…well, to be honest, since a couple years ago, but I’ve wanted you from the first time I met you. I know things were a little bumpy for us, I left you to deal with things on your own for so long, and I’m lucky you still wanted me after that. We’ve waited till now, but I wanted to ask, will you marry me? Preferably, within the next couple months?”
It was such an intimate moment to watch, and I didn’t need to guess that my sister would definitely say yes, so I turned to look at Ginger instead.
“I thought you two were already engaged,” Ginger said, surprised.
“So did I,” I muttered, sarcastic. “But that guy over there out of the blue asked Dad if he could have his daughter’s hand in marriage, he even tried to buy a ring again yesterday, and he dragged me with him,” I continued to grouse.
In the next moment, though, I also set down my glass, then Ginger’s. I got down on one knee, right in front of her, holding up the box open so she could see her ring. Fern was having a field day, squealing and jumping around us, the puppy running around her and barking in confused excitement.
I didn’t have as many words as Dan had, so I was very direct.
“Ginger,” I said, smiling softly up at her as she perfectly mirrored Scarlett’s pose. “Will you marry me?”
Her smile, when she dropped her hand from her face and let me see, was beautiful. Tears glistened in her eyes, but when she answered, her voice was loud and clear.
“Yes.”
###The End###
More Books By Stephanie Brother…
Single Daddy
Book 1 in the Single Daddy series
Chapter One
Noah
“Who’s at the fucking door?” I shout out as I leave my bedroom. They’d better have a good excuse for continually ringing the doorbell like that.
“I’m not deaf!” I shout as I start to walk down the stairs. I’ve a killer hangover from the rodeo last night. I don’t even feel like getting up today, especially with the sweet pussy that I had after the rodeo. These cowgirls get a kick out of riding not only the horses but guys too.
“Again!”
I’m getting even more agitated at the idea that they keep ringing the bell. They’re not saying anything—just ringing the damn thing.
I walk glumly toward the door as the person gets the hint and stops ringing the bell. Obviously, it’s no one from the ranch. They typically just walk in the house and shout my name. It can’t be Harper who comes to clean the house every other day. No, it must be someone I don’t know. Maybe I should have pretended not to be in just so that they’ll go away and stop ringing the damn bell as if their life depends on it.
As I open the door, I see something on the doorstep. I wonder if I woke up drunk because I must be fucking hallucinating.
I spot Carl sloughing by, so I point at it with my eyes half-open. Shit, I can't even focus properly, because the sun’s shining hard. I shout out, “Dude!”
I wish I would stop talking like that, but that’s what happens when you spend too much time in sunny California.
“Who left this?”
He lifts up his shoulders in a half-shrug, as if it’s too much effort for him to do a proper one. Why does he always look as if he’s been trekking around America for the last few months? The guy always looks tired. No matter the time of day or how many hours he’s slept, the guy looks the same. If he weren't such a good hand on the ranch, I would get rid of him. Not only because of his tired looks but because he’s just clueless. He’s a hard worker, but everything has to be spelled out for him. Thinking out of the box, isn’t an option.
“But, you must have seen someone come by and just…”
I can’t even get the words out. I keep looking at my feet, and I’m trying to pretend that it isn’t there. That this isn’t happening to me.
My life’s simple here. Get a few cowgirls that want to live on a big ranch, tease them and please them, and then when it’s all done, I tell them that I can’t commit. I can’t. Not now, not ever. I tried a relationship once, but after my ex, Jessica, spat in my face about the idea, I promised myself never again would I ask a girl to move in. She told me that I love playing and never take anything serious. If that was the case, I never would have asked her to move in with me.
“Oh, welcome to the land of the living,” Aria sings as she comes closer to the house. I want to go inside and close the door. This never happened. No one left a basket outside my fucking door with a baby in it. The baby’s crying. Shit!
“Holy cow, Noah. I thought that she was leaving a basket of fruit or something.”
I grab hold of Aria’s arm as she comes closer, thinking that maybe if I catch up with the person, I can give it back.
“Who?”
She bends down and sighs, “Isn’t he the cutest?”
She’s joking. Sure, it’s cute or that’s what people always say about their babies. I steer well clear of them, which is why someone must have made a mistake when they dropped this one here. But, why would someone just come and drop a baby at my doorstep?
“Are you going to tell me who, or are you going to keep me guessing all day?”
My head’s throbbing, and the last thing I need at this time of the morning is to play guessing games with Aria. She’s bitchy because she thought that I was coming on to her and that I was into her. No, I was fucking horny. Dad always said don’t mix business with pleasure. I did, and now I have to play the price. She works with the horses, and I should have known better than to try and get it on with one of the staff.
“Some girl. She was holding the basket and pressing the bell like crazy. I thought that she was an idiot like me.”
Aria’s looking me directly in the eye, trying to figure out if there will be some reaction from me. There’s none because I told her once and I’m not doing it again. It was one night. I was horny, wanted to get my leg over, and she thought that I wanted a relationship. I made it clear that I didn’t. So, if she’s still upset about it, she could leave. There’s plenty of ranches around here. This isn’t the only one. Besides, she’s good at her job, and I pay her more than any ranch would pay her—which is probably why she sticks around.
“Look, there’s a note.”
I grab it quickly and read it out loud. I don’t need her to wind me up even further. There’s a baby outside my house. She lifts the basket saying, “You can’t leave him here all day.”
“Sure, his mom will come back for him. Maybe she left a number on this note.” I realize that I’m fucking talking to myself, as Aria’s already in the house with someone else’s baby. I turn around and she’s making those funny sounds, the noises that people tend to make whenever they see a baby. It’s as if they’ve lost their mind.
Dear Noah,
I know that we met that one night when you were in Vegas eleven months ago.
I can’t cope with the baby. His name is Richard, after my granddad. I need you to look after him for a while.
I hope that you become friends.
Please don’t try and contact me.
I had nowhere else to go. I need Richard to be safe, and he’s your son.
Candy
Holy shit!
The one-night stand… My hands are trembling and my heart’s beating out of control as I flashbacks of the night enter my head. Dan, my best friend from high school, was getting married. I was best man, and I booked the whole damn bachelor party—the hotel, car, and flights. I remember having a one-night stand, and I was pretty wasted that weekend.
But, I used a condom. I’m like 99% sure that I used one, just so that I didn’t get in trouble. Like I seem to have done now. Besides, Vegas is fucking notorious for one-night stands. I scratch my head as I now realize her name.
Candy!
That’s it. I kept teasing her asking if she’s ‘as sweet as candy,’ and I meant from the waist down. She can’t just come here and drop a baby on me. What was she doing during those eleven months? Why didn’t she try and get in contact then?
I avoid going to the living room where Aria’s still making the noises with the baby. I get my phone from my back pocket and call Dan. Shit, we’ve got to go back to Vegas. We need to find Candy. I shut the door and start making the call.
“Dan.”
“Hey, man, surprised you’re up. You were pretty wasted last night.”
Fuck the small talk.
“Who’s that?”
Right then, little Richard starts crying again as I pace in the hallway to avoid going directly into the living room.
“That’s exactly what I’m calling you about.”
He starts laughing. “You’re a daddy.”
“Look, it’s not funny. Some chick just left a note and said that I’m the daddy.”
“Shit, I thought they only did that type of shit in movies.”
I’ll say, but for the first time, this is happening to me in real life. I think that maybe he’s right. I was pretty wasted last night, so this could be a bad dream. It must be as I look up and see Aria in front of me trying to soothe Richard. I only have nightmares with her in them.
But, I’m not fucking delusional. There is a baby in front of me. My dreams are vivid, but not so fucking real that I’m walking around with this killer of a hangover. Whatever Aria’s doing to Richard, it’s not working.
Her phone rings and she starts walking toward me. “You take him. Maybe he wants his daddy.”
Again, Dan starts laughing. “Shit, you are a daddy. Don’t go anywhere. I’m coming over, and I’m bringing the boys. They’ll love to see this.”
Any other time, I would join in and have a laugh too, but when it comes at my expense it’s not fucking funny. I’m balancing my phone in one hand and Richard in the other. That’s when I notice something.
Aria laughs as she comes back into the room. “See, he did want his daddy. Good luck, Noah. I’ve got to get a job.”
Then she leaves. What the fuck is she talking about? She works here on the ranch. What job?
I attempt to put little Richard back into his basket. Every time I do, he starts crying. I still need a DNA test. The fact that Richard’s winding me up kind of proves that he’s mine, but it’s not enough to convince me. I can’t do this. Not all day. I’ve got a hangover to get rid of, horses that I need to tend to. My day’s filled with chores, and none of them involve looking after a baby.
For sale at all e-stores.