Brick and Vince laughed, followed by Cord.
Bucky’s head jerked at the sound.
“What the hell was that?” Cord asked, brows crashing together, glancing from Jovy to Stone to Bucky…who mooed at him.
Jovy scratched her forehead. “I don’t understand. That should’ve worked. Maybe we did it wrong. There’s got to be something I missed.”
“Think faster,” Cord said, his gaze narrowing as the cow began to trot his way. “Jovy?”
“It’s not my fault!” she said, wringing her hands. “Are all the damn cows in Texas defective?”
Kaydee leaned against Leo and laughed. “This is better than Netflix.”
“Stone. Dammit. Do something,” Cord said, his tone more insistent than Leo had ever heard. Hell, the guy had faced down insurgents without batting an eye. “He’s not stopping.”
“Use your Warlock stare,” Brick suggested with a laugh.
Leo knew he shouldn’t, but he laughed, too. He couldn’t help it. It was damn funny.
“Lula Belle.” Jovy marched over to the cow grazing near Stone’s feet. “What did you say to Bucky? You broke him.”
The cow stopped grazing, raised her head, looked at Jovy, then mooed. Bucky didn’t react, unless you counted sniffing Cord’s crotch.
Cord reacted, though. He cursed and hopped up onto the porch. Apparently only Lula Belle knew how to climb steps, because Bucky stayed in the yard, but paced the length of the porch. “Jesus,” Cord grumbled. “Could this day get any crazier?”
Kaydee cleared her throat. “Uh, does my water breaking count?”
Leo’s heart slammed into his throat. He jerked his head in her direction and blinked. “Seriously?”
She nodded. “Yes.”
Damn. Their doctor and hospital were in Dallas—over an hour away. “Are you okay?” He grabbed her hand, and it shook, so he brought it to his chest…and that’s when he realized he was the one shaking.
“I’m fine.” She smiled, a calm, beautiful smile that immediately grounded him.
He leaned in to brush his lips to her forehead. “I love you.”
“I love you, too,” she said, squeezing his hand.
“What do we do?” Brick’s panic tone startled the cows. “Should I boil water?”
Vince snorted. “Yeah, sure. If we were in the movies.”
Leo glanced at the faces now crowded around them. “Okay. Looks like we’re having a baby.” He gave out orders. It never even dawned on him to panic. A far cry from the man he was when he’d first set foot on the ranch three years ago.
Leo and Cord helped Kaydee settle into the back seat of Kaydee’s car that Jovy had covered with a few towels. Thank God they hadn’t come down to Joyful in his truck. He climbed in the back with her because Cord insisted on driving them, and because his buddy was an army medic, Leo didn’t argue, just in case their baby decided to arrive super quick.
As it turned out, their little girl was very considerate, not only waiting until they got to the hospital, she waited for their doctor to arrive, and all their family and friends—except for Kaydee’s parents, who were catching the first flight in the morning.
Watching his wife cradle their little girl, something inside Leo clicked into place. He hadn’t realized anything was out of place. Being with Kaydee made him whole. Now he was…solid.
“How do you feel?” he asked, brushing his wife’s temple with his lips.
“Happy,” she said, her tone hoarse with emotion. “So happy.” She glanced up at him. “You?”
“Complete,” he said firmly.
Kaydee’s eyes filled with tears, which spilled down her face as she handed their daughter to him.
