Chapter Twenty-Five

Blog post: Dates and Time

When people warn that the older you get, the faster time flies, it scares me. I can’t imagine the days disappearing any quicker than they already do.

It’s the beginning of August. It’s been just over two weeks since we moved to Rocky.

It’s been less than a month since we showed up for our first visit.

We won’t talk about how short a time on the calendar it’s been since Buckaroo announced he was planning to impact my life, but I’m already twenty-seven weeks into this pregnancy gig. Just three months to go before the kid stops poking me from the inside. Although, don’t get me wrong. I’m not complaining because that is one cool sensation.

But here I am, having new adventures and new challenges, and I swear every day disappears before I’ve had a chance to fully wake up… Did I mention I’m hanging around with a shit-ton of Colemans? Me, the person who barely recognizes my own face in the mirror in the morning, suddenly has a lot of faces to put names to. I apologize again, cousin Steve, for walking straight past you the other day. You were very gracious to accept “pregnancy brain” as an excuse for my forgetfulness.

To my reading audience, remember how I mentioned the Colemans are pretty much all cut from the same cloth? There is no way I shouldn’t have recognized him as a relative.

Maybe time is moving so fast he was blurry—

 

 

The days fell into the familiar routine of ranch work, very much the same as what Jesse had experienced since the time he was old enough to toddle after his dad to help with chores. The only difference was now Jesse didn’t get to work side by side with his brothers as often since Blake had him on rotation as one of the hands. Sometimes an edge of frustration struck before Jesse shoved it down mercilessly and focused instead on all the privileges he’d been granted that he didn’t really deserve.

Because they were living with Joel and Vicki, he got to spend more time with his twin than he had in the years before he left. That was a sweet enough reward to put up with the moments when he wanted to slap himself silly for his past sins.

And Dare was there. The woman was a bundle of positive energy, and every time he found himself slipping toward brooding, she would subtly, or sometimes not-so-subtly, remind him to mind his manners.

Like the time they were sitting around the bonfire in the evening, a couple more of the cousins and their partners joining the conversation.

Out of the blue Dare stood, stepping on his foot in the process before stumbling into his arms and clinging to him like a princess in need of rescuing.

“Oh, my hero,” she declared dramatically before kissing him thoroughly. Appreciative wolf whistles exploded from the rest of his family.

“Not that I’m going to complain about you kissing me, but what was that about?” he asked as they made their way hand-in-hand back to the trailer a while later. “I didn’t think you were into public displays of affection.”

She shrugged. “You were glaring at Vicki. You weren’t even aware of it, so I thought a little distraction all around might go a long way.”

Jesse cursed. “I don’t even know what I was thinking. Why would I be glaring at her?”

Dare tugged on his hand. “Old habits die hard. Do you still feel horrible inside when you look at her?”

“Guilty?” Jesse thought it through. “Yes, but it’s different now. Less intense. Honestly, every time we’re in the trailer and I feel it, I get up and clean something.”

A burst of laughter escaped her lips. “I wondered what was up with your Mr. Clean imitation.”

“You think it’s stupid?” Jesse asked.

“Nope. I think it’s a brilliant way to redirect your need for punishment into something that is good for everybody.” She offered him a sweet smirk. “I like that there is less for me to tidy.”

So daily he got up, reluctantly uncurled himself from the bundle of heat that was Dare, then headed into a full day of work followed by an evening spent doing something with her.

They visited with each of his brothers and their wives, and with Mike and Marion, but they also did more ordinary dating kinds of things, and those were the moments he’d catch himself forgetting the reason they were together was because of one hot night back in cold February.

Sitting in the movie theatre holding her hand felt right.

“Hey. Stop daydreaming and get moving,” Matt ordered, leaning on his shovel at the other end of the ditch they were digging by hand.

Jesse blinked himself back to the here and now, which was a distant field at the edge of Coleman property where they needed to fix a broken standpipe. “Shit. Sorry about that.”

Matt glanced at his watch. “Coffee break. You and me are both foggy today.”

“You skipping sleep to party?” Jesse teased.

“Colt’s teething, and Hope has a summer cold. They’re both miserable.”

A moment later they’d both climbed out of the hole, sitting on the ground with cups of coffee. Jesse popped open his lunchbox to discover Dare had snuck in a pile of brownies, and he passed one over to his brother.

“Vicki makes the best brownies.” An appreciative sound escaped Matt an instant after he bit into the chocolatey goodness. He took a sip of his coffee then gave Jesse a strange look.

“What’s that about?” Jesse demanded. “I sacrifice one of my brownies, and you make a face?”

“How’s it going, living with Joel and Vicki?”

That was a question to stop a man in his tracks. Ever cautious of Dare’s warning in the back of his brain to keep his stupidity on the down low, Jesse considered what to say. He didn’t want to flip off something nonchalant, but there was no way he could explain how earth-shatteringly monumental it was to slowly accept his mistakes and move on.

“Did you ever have something you spent a lot of time and energy on before realizing you were focusing on the wrong thing?”

A derisive snort escaped his brother.

Jesse eyed him in confusion.

“You’re asking a man who wasted years trying to make someone happy when the one woman who means everything to me was right there under my nose.” Matt leaned forward on an elbow. “Sometimes I kick myself for having been so stupid, and then Hope catches me and points out that we can’t change the past, we can only enjoy the future. So that’s what I do, every damn day.”

A huge shot of guilt and regret washed over Jesse. He really was a sorry son of a gun.

“I’m an ass,” Jesse said. “I’ve been so focused on me and my world that it didn’t even hit until now what kind of hell you went through.”

“Yet every day I get to spend time with the woman I love, and we’ve got a great if slightly cranky kid that we made—life’s pretty damn good,” Matt insisted. Then he grinned. “Look at you. You might actually be growing up.”

“Shut up.”

“No, I mean it, this is a good thing.” Matt’s grin got wider. “I can hardly wait to see you all thrown out of kilter down the road when you’re trying to figure out how to convince your baby girl that she really does want to go to sleep because you can’t keep your eyes open an instant longer.”

Jesse smirked. “You think Dare’s having a girl?”

“Got my bid in. Girl, November third.”

“Dare is going to hate you for that,” Jesse warned. “She’s already insisting Buckaroo will arrive early.”

Matt slapped him on the shoulder, and they finished their break before climbing back into the ditch and getting muddy. But Jesse was grateful that the entire conversation—other than the talking-about-babies bit—had been so completely normal.

He was back with his family, and this felt right too.

Friday night after supper, he and Joel washed up the dishes while the girls took off to get changed. A visit to Traders was on the agenda—finally. It was the first time they’d been able to make it since Dare got out of the hospital, and they were both looking forward to dancing and relaxing.

Jesse checked inside, shocked but grateful that the only thing he really felt about spending the evening with Joel and Vicki and the other Colemans who’d be there was anticipation.

He popped into their bedroom and found Dare standing in front of the closet in her underwear and bra.

He slipped behind her and pressed a kiss to the nape of her neck. “I don’t mind the outfit one bit, but I’m not letting you go to Traders like that,” he warned.

Dare turned, discontent written on her face. “I hate to be stereotypical, but I’ve got nothing to wear. Nothing I can go dancing in.”

He let his gaze drop over her body, tempted to suggest they stay home to do some horizontal dancing. She was an eager partner between the sheets, but getting out was important too, he was coming to realize.

He stroked a hand over her belly. She’d noticeably popped in the last week. It wasn’t something he’d expected, but in truth he thought the baby bump was damn sexy.

“Buckaroo making your favourite outfits not fit?” She didn’t answer, but her lower lip stuck out in a pout. He leaned forward and nipped at it. “I thought you were going to borrow some things from Jaxi and the other girls.”

“I did, but I skipped a size somewhere in the last two days.”

He reached into the closet and grabbed one of his shirts. “Wear the jeans you’ve got with that stretchy bit in the front, and put this on. With your boots, you’ll be the best-dressed cowgirl in the place.”

She went to take the shirt from his hands, but he held it hostage for a moment. “I get a kiss in payment.”

Dare give him a quick smooch before stepping away to get dressed. “I’m surprised you didn’t demand a blow job.”

He slapped his thigh. “Dammit, you’re right. I’ll remember that for next time.”

The Traders Pub parking lot was packed with a typical Friday-night summer crowd. He caught Dare by the hand, Joel and Vicki following, as they headed straight to the dance side of the place since Dare wasn’t drinking.

The Colemans had taken over the east corner of the standing tables off the dance floor. Couples slipped on and off the hardwood area, people shifting around enough that as the room warmed up, light coats were discarded and hung on the hooks attached to the vertical wooden posts.

They danced a little then visited. Dare only had to ask on the sly for name reminders a few times. Lee and Trevor were there from the Moonshine clan with Rachel and Becky, Rafe from Angel with Laurel. Tamara and Lisa from the Whiskey Creek side of things. Just him and Joel from Six Pack.

It was a far cry from the days when all fifteen of them had been single and out for a regular Friday-night whoop-up. Only seven cousins were out tonight, although five with partners. None of the couples with kids, though—maybe that’s what made it feel so different.

Come November, he and Dare wouldn’t be out on a regular basis either. Not without wrangling a babysitter.

The world was changing.

Dare took off toward the washroom, which gave Jesse his first opportunity to chat with Rafe about something that needed discussing. He motioned his cousin to the side, and they walked away, leaving the rest of the Colemans gathered at the edge of the dance floor.

Rafe ordered them a couple of beers and passed one to Jesse, a question in his eyes.

The place was noisy enough that where they were standing they were pretty much alone in a crowd. Jesse twisted toward the dance floor but spoke in Rafe’s direction. “You know the thing that I told you was an issue before I left?”

Rafe grinned briefly before washing it away with a swallow of beer. “You mean the thing that I said you didn’t need to worry about anymore? The thing I said wasn’t really a thing?”

“Jackass,” Jesse muttered.

“Jerk.” Rafe just stood there like a Sphinx. “I am waiting for you to admit I was right. You know, about the thing that I don’t even know what you’re talking about anymore because it never happened.”

So much for having to warn Rafe not to discuss what Jesse had confessed to last February.

Only something Dare had said stuck with him, hard, and it was important to share that bit. “Fine, you were right, but also wrong, because something did happen. I got my ass handed to me that night, and I hope I’m smarter because of it.”

Rafe smacked his hand on Jesse’s shoulder and squeezed tight. “I’m very glad that the King of Guilt has decided to abdicate his throne.”

It was taking a while to disassemble the thing, but that was a pretty accurate image. Pulling down his past regrets one brick at a time and using them to build that road into the future.

“How are things going with Laurel?” Jesse asked.

Rafe eased his back to the bar, leaning side-by-side with Jesse. His gaze found Laurel in the midst of the family gathering. “I’m in love. That pretty much sums it up. My heart beats faster every time I see her. I wake up every damn morning wondering what I did to deserve her—you know, all of the typically cheesy fallen head over heels in love things.”

“I’m glad. It’s pretty clear you two were meant to be together. You know, like I told you before I left,” he added.

“Jerk,” Rafe returned happily.

While they talked, Jesse watched the rhythm of the dance before them, as family and friends slipped off and on the floor and into conversations. Laughter and smiles and deep connection. It’s what had been there for so long, and yet so often Jesse had felt on the outskirts of it.

This time something seemed noticeably new, but he wasn’t quite sure what had changed.

His favourite redhead reentered the room, heading toward the family. She’d pulled on a pale blue T-shirt that stretched over her belly before tying his shirt over top, and she looked pretty damn cute. With the extra weight in front, her hips swayed more than before, but her strut across the wooden boards was enough to make his body instantly go into high alert.

When she stepped up to Joel and slipped a hand around his hip, Jesse’s spine straightened so fast it nearly snapped out of his skin.

He was moving toward them an instant later.

Joel hadn’t even glanced at her, completely focused on his conversation with their cousin Trevor. Still, he automatically stretched a hand out to curl it around Dare’s hip. Only his fingers brushed her belly, and just as Jesse arrived, Joel and Dare both realized their mistake and sprang apart as if jet-propelled.

For one second conversation fell quiet as everyone waited to see what would happen. Dance music pulsed, hot and heavy, but no one spoke. Vicki turned from where she’d been hidden behind a couple of the girls, concern in her eyes.

Jesse was utterly shocked to discover honest amusement bubbling up inside. He reached out and caught hold of Dare’s fingers, tugging her against him and lifting her chin.

“Wrong Coleman,” he teased before pressing a light kiss to her lips.

Her cheeks were bright red when he pulled away, but her eyes sparkled. “Maybe I should take Vicki up on that offer to put a bell on you.”

“Maybe you should, but you better make it a big bell.” He winked as she tapped him lightly on the chest. “An enormous bell, so it goes with all the other things about me that are bigger than life.”

“Like your ego?” Joel tossed out.

Laughter rang from the group, a sense of relief on the air, but when it came down to it, Jesse was more focused on pulling Dare onto the dance floor and into his arms than worrying about a silly mistake.

She settled against him, the strange and yet familiar Buckaroo bump between them as he guided her around the dance floor.

“That was pretty impressive,” she offered. “You know, you not going all caveman.”

“Just let me know if Joel and I need to coordinate our clothing in the future.”

“How about you and me coordinate our un-clothing in a couple of hours?”

He liked where this was going. “Are you trying to seduce me, Ms. Hayes?”

“I’m offering to fuck your brains out, Mr. Coleman.”

He glanced at his watch. “Oh, look at that. It’s time to go home already.”

Jesse picked her up. Right there in the middle of the dance floor, he swung her into his arms and marched toward the door. Applause broke out from the Colemans and others in the bar.

Dare clung to his shoulders, laughter escaping her lips. “What are you doing, you crazy man?”

“Bullshit on hanging around for a couple of hours after you make an offer like that. I’ve decided to save the caveman behaviour for the moments that matter the most. This definitely counts.”

Dare didn’t argue as he settled her into his truck. “Take me back to your cave,” she offered.

So he did.

 

 

Dare thought she would miss Heart Falls more, but the truth was she heard from Ginny nearly as often as before, just without the random drop-ins and thievery of chocolate from her pantry. She got text messages from the boys on a regular basis, and a phone call every week from Caleb, who refused to enter the technical revolution.

The girls Skyped her. Sasha chatted up a storm about everything they’d been doing. Emma made Dare teary-eyed as she held out her favourite stuffy like an offering then hugged it fiercely. They both whined about the babysitters Caleb seemed to be running through like sand, Sasha with loud, determined phrases like “mean and stubborn”, Emma with all too evocative eye motions to back up her sister’s complaints.

Her blog was going strong, and the new Ranching with Buckaroo section was a big hit. More than that, there’d been a special kind of joy getting to know the other Coleman women better, especially Vicki.

It wasn’t as if Dare had been living in a cave. She’d had friends at school. She’d had all of the Stone family, but having to step into a new setting where everyone else seemed solidly connected had forced Dare to step out from behind the computer screen.

A screen which had to be located a little farther away on a weekly basis as Buckaroo took up more and more room.

Dare caught herself now and then staring at her belly in surprise. Not as if she could forget it was there, but still, sometimes she did. She went to roll over in bed one night, and it seemed easier to put a hand under her belly to help turn—it was weird having a body that wasn’t quite hers alone anymore.

Suddenly they were two-and-a-half months out from Buckaroo Arrival Day, as Jesse had begun to put it. Somehow Dare refrained from stepping on his toes every time he made some comment about BAD to the bone.

When his phone rang during breakfast, Jesse checked the display then answered it, his expression more confused than anything. “Hey, Travis. Did I miss something on the schedule? Am I late?”

Dare and Vicki exchanged glances.

“Time?” Dare asked quietly.

Vicki shrugged. “Could be.”

Jesse hung up, his expression complete puzzlement. “All he said was ‘Ashley’s in labour’, then he hung up.”

“It’s time.” Vicki popped to her feet and hurried to the fridge. “I have a basket ready for you to take.”

Dare was eager to go and scared to death. She turned to Jesse who was sitting like a lump at the table in stunned silence. “Come on. We gotta get over there.”

This time Jesse and Joel exchanged panicked glances before Jesse turned back. “Are you out of your ever-lovin’ mind?”

“Nope. I told you this,” Dare reminded him. “Remember? I said Ashley thought it would be a great idea for me to get a little more experience with what having a baby was like, since I have no idea. Well, other than cows and cats and ranch animals, but human babies are different.”

She had him by the hand and was tugging him to his feet, the reluctant sack of bones that he was. “I thought that meant we were going to babysit sometime. With supervision.”

“It means Ashley, who is having a homebirth, decided since she was already going to have a bunch of people around, she doesn’t mind having us watch what goes on to deliver a people baby.”

Dare guided Jesse toward the front door.

Behind them at the table Joel was laughing out loud. “You really know how to have a good time, bro. You can keep Travis company after he faints.”

“I don’t know if this is a good idea,” Jesse complained again.

She shoved him into a chair and pushed his boots at him. “Neither do I, but we’re doing it. Get a move on, and I might let you hide out if you really feel squeamish.”

Vicki handed him the basket, and they were in the truck and headed over to the house across the coulee from the homestead.

A veritable party boatload of trucks and vehicles were parked there, and when they went to the house, Ashley’s mama Tina was waiting for them.

“They’ve got everything set up in the studio.” She pointed to the building behind the house. “I’ll be over in a little while. Just making some tea.”

Jesse slowed his pace. “We don’t need to rush. I’m sure this is going to take a long time.”

Maybe he was right.

“If I slow down I might chicken out,” Dare admitted, holding his hand tightly enough he couldn’t get away. Tight enough she couldn’t turn on her heel and escape.

They pulled to a stop outside the door, and he took a deep breath. “Okay, I first thought you were crazy, but considering there’s no getting out of doing this with Buckaroo, you’re right. I’m not looking forward to it, but knowing a little more what will happen will make it easier down the road.”

They’d been taking prenatal classes, but that kind of knowledge wasn’t the same.

Of course, what they found in the studio was nothing like the hospital birth that Dare planned on having. The large, open-air studio space at the top of the stairs had been given a few key additions. Like usual, the sun streaked in the windows creating golden rectangles that decorated the hardwood floor, but in one corner a king-size mattress had been added, covered with blankets towels and pillows. Beside that a group of upright wooden chairs, as if waiting for a musical ensemble to gather. Outside on the deck, though, was the star of the show. A wood-fired hot tub big enough to hold a half-dozen people.

Jesse grinned as he stepped forward. “You guys put a hot tub in Ashley’s art studio?”

“We were told to decorate the place the way we wanted, and if you hadn’t noticed, Ashley has a decidedly hedonistic mindset.” Cassidy was in the hot tub, holding Ashley against him. Her head rested on his shoulder, bikini-covered breasts and the round of her belly bobbing against the surface of the water like three islands in the ocean. “It’s not quite the proper temperature at the moment, but it works for today.”

Ashley lifted a hand and waved. “Hey, guys. You made it on time.”

Dare stepped toward the edge of the tub and slipped a hand in. “That feels comfy. Is it nice?”

The other woman nodded. “You really need to hit the swimming pool. All the support when you’re ninety percent stomach is incredible. Makes it easier for the back rubs, because right now it feels as if I’m being squeezed into a tiny little space while a million knives stab into my lower back.”

“But hey, Dare. Don’t worry, this giving-birth thing is a breeze,” Travis muttered from the other side of the hot tub.

Ashley held up her middle finger. “Love you too, asshole.”

“Just saying.” Travis came to the side of the tub and caught her fingers, pressing a kiss to her knuckles. “Maybe you should consider not freaking out the other pregnant lady.”

Ashley’s eyes brightened. “She’d rather know what to expect than have rainbows and sunshine lollipops tossed at her.

Dare wasn’t sure. “Although, lollipops are nice.”

Behind Ashley, Cassidy laughed, the sound turning into soothing encouragement. “Breathe, Ash. Breathe.”

Ashley obeyed, a long, slow inhalation followed by a purse of her lips as she blew air at Travis. Staring into his eyes as she worked through the contraction.

Everyone got caught up in the rhythm, the whole room breathing in unison until Ashley let out a sigh and relaxed back into Cassidy’s arms. “Whoa, that’s one more done. They’re getting stronger.”

Skyler, Ashley’s mom was there, reaching into the tub to brush a hand over her belly. “You comfy, sweetie?”

“Yup.” Ashley motioned at her mother. “Mom is a midwife, so she gets to pull double duty.”

“Your mama—Tina,” Dare said. “She was making tea. She said she’d be out in a minute.”

Skyler laughed. “No, she won’t.” Dare must’ve made a face because the woman took pity on her and explained more thoroughly. “Tina is not much into childbirth. That’s why I had Ashley. When she was born, Tina went out drinking.”

“I volunteered to follow that tradition,” Travis offered, “but I was told in no uncertain terms I needed to be here. There were words like cut off for life and cut off for real bandied about.”

He was joking, because as the contractions continue to hit it was obvious Cassidy and Travis were the only support team Ashley really needed. Cassidy offered soothing words of comfort, and Travis acted as an anchor, occasionally bullying Ashley into doing the next thing.

“You’re doing good cop/bad cop with her,” Jesse pointed out quietly when Cassidy stepped aside to dry himself. Travis had taken Ashley from his arms and carried her to the side of the room to use the towels there.

Cassidy took a deep breath as he glanced across the room to where Ashley stood, the situation teetering at the point where the baby’s arrival was imminent.

“It’s what she needs right now. Although frankly, if Travis orders either of us to jump, we’re pretty used to asking how high.” He grinned at Dare. “Don’t get me wrong, we like it.”

Dare’s cheeks flushed as Cassidy excused himself and headed across the room. He stopped and wrapped his arms around both Travis and Ashley, and it seemed as if Dare was watching something holy and intensely private. As if Travis and Cassidy were gathering an infusion of love and pouring it into Ashley to help her finish the important task before her.

Cassidy kissed both of them on the cheek, then headed across the room to help Skyler wrestle with a low, wide-seated chair.

Travis had an arm around Ashley, walking slowly in a circle with her. Dare was called forward to pace beside them, Ashley giving a running commentary of all the things she expected the guys to do in the future to make up for her current condition.

“Daily foot rubs?” Travis asked.

“I’d demand hourly, but the ranch might complain if you had to stop that often.” Ashley waved a hand magnanimously. “I don’t want to put your family out.”

Her joking lightened the tension, as did her comments about the artwork in the room and wanting to finish some projects. Toward the windows and open work area, a number of Ashley’s pallets and easels stood, partially finished projects right there in the open.

“I thought artists were shy about people seeing their stuff,” Jesse said.

Ashley waited until she was done panting through another set of contractions before offering a tired grin. “Jesse, what have I ever done to make you think I’m shy?”

She had a point. Travis had a hand on the towel wrapped around her waist, but other than a bikini top, she was without another stitch of clothing.

“Art is something different than seeing body parts,” Jesse insisted. He had hold of Dare’s hand, squeezing as he tried to appear calm even though it was clear to Dare he was as floored by all this as she was. “Speaking of body parts. I really hope Travis and Cassidy plan to let me live after today, right?”

Ashley rocked to a stop, air escaping through her teeth as she grimaced. When she could breathe again, she stuck out her tongue. “I’m wearing a bra for your sake. My hou-ha doesn’t count. It’s most definitely not a sexual organ at the moment.” She tilted her head back to gasp at Travis. “Oh, my God. I think it’s time.”

He and Skyler led her to where Cassidy was lowering himself into the strange, low chair. She settled in his lap, between his thighs. Cassidy wrapped his arms around her then let Ashley get herself comfortable, gripping his arms as Travis moved into position in front of her and their gazes locked.

Dare and Jesse stood to the side, and he slipped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close, murmuring in her ear. “You doing okay? It’s not too much?”

“I’m going to have to do this. I don’t know if I’m more scared now or less, but I think I’m happy I’m here.”

And then with Jesse’s arm holding her tight, Dare got to watch as Ashley got down to serious business. Her mom helped Travis catch the baby while both men encouraged Ashley with sweet words, and strong words, and exactly what she needed.

The expression on Cassidy’s face was enough to make Dare’s throat tighten—the sheer glow of pride and happiness as a little girl was laid in his and Ashley’s arms.

Ashley stroked a finger over a teeny cheek, the baby’s cries barely more than protests from a cooing dove. “Welcome to our family, sweet one.”

Cassidy pressed a kiss to Ashley’s temple as he carefully picked up one of the baby’s hands. “She’s beautiful.”

Travis caught her other fingers in his, sliding up so he could put an arm around Ashley and Cassidy’s shoulders. “Of course, she is. Love made her.”

Dare was torn. It was impossible to look away, and yet after everything they’d witnessed during the birth, this was the moment when it felt as if she was intruding on something far too private.

She glanced up at Jesse to find his expression unreadable. Tension had taken root in his body as he watched the tableau before them.

Then he cleared his throat softly. “Congratulations. That was the most incredible thing I’ve ever seen.”

Three sets of eyes turned toward them briefly, a smile on Ashley’s face as if she’d completed a marathon—exhausted, yet satisfied. “It’s the most incredible thing I’ve ever done.”

Cassidy and Travis nodded briefly before turning their attention back on Ashley and the baby.

Dare had to know. “What’s her name?”

Cassidy forced his gaze up. “Daisy. Daisy Joy Coleman.”

She and Jesse took their leave, but Dare doubted that the three new parents even noticed, too wrapped up in each other. Sweet words of love drifting between them, three sets of arms cradling that tiny life as they officially welcomed Daisy into their hearts and lives.

They stopped at the house and let Tina know. She nodded, then picked up a thermos that sat waiting on the table and headed briskly toward the studio.

Dare and Jesse sat in silence on the ride back to the trailer. More mysteries of Buckaroo’s imminent arrival had been answered, but there was a different, intensely powerful question that refused to let her alone.

A question that refused to be ignored.

Buckaroo would arrive when he was good and ready, and while she wasn’t looking forward to it, she could handle the physical work of labour and delivery.

Jesse would be her support. He could be both good cop and bad cop for her, she was sure of that as well. He’d proven repeatedly he only wanted what was best for Buckaroo.

What she was trying to ignore was the part inside her that wondered if their friendship and his resolve to be there for Buckaroo could ever be more.

If she would ever have someone—Jesse—look at her the way Cassidy and Travis had looked at Ashley.