Tears burn at the corners of my eyes again, but I refuse to let them fall. I’ve had enough of crying, even if I’m no more certain of anything than I was half an hour ago. The only thing Iamsure about is that I can’t let Bennett go. Even if it means losing out on my trust fund entirely, I need him.
I don’t want to live the rest of my life wishing he was by my side.
“I don’t know if he will,” I admit quietly, looking down at my lap to hide my panic. “Even if he only got so mad about the pregnancy because of his ex, that doesn’t mean he actually wants me.”
Sophia hisses out a breath and winces, muttering something about handing her son’s ass to him. When she looks back at me, her smile is a little more strained, but no less honest.
“I take it he didn’t tell you who his Pa is, then?”
“His dad?”
What does his dad have to do with any of this?
“Has your father ever mentioned someone named Joseph Hernandez?” The name sounds vaguely familiar, but I can’t come up with any details, so I shake my head. “He’s a… friend of your father’s. Tries to be, at least. He owns a few businesses, and we buy cattle from David for one of them. They used to be on good terms, but after that whole business with Peter Wallace embezzling from him, Joseph offered to help your dad out.”
That was so long ago! Why does he and his goddamn family ruin everything they touch? I swear, if this is another bullshit story like Chuckles, I’m going to go ballistic.
“He offered to buy shares of the ranch, just to get some money flowing. He didn’t want to take over the ranch, didn’t even want to have any say in decisions, but David didn’t take it well. He… had some very nasty things to say about Joseph’s offer.”
“Yeah, I can imagine,” I say with a scoff.
I doubt Dad even let this guy try to explain himself before going off the deep end.
“Well, Joseph still tries,” she says with a sad grin. “We send someone up every year to help out with the cattle drive so Joseph can get a report on how the ranch is doing. He knows David won’t tell him if he needs anything, so Joseph just sends someone to check on things in case there’s something he canhelp with. We usually send Carlos, but he’s on paternity leave, so we asked Bennett to go this year. I assume you know more about the rest than I do.”
So Bennett is… what, the son of one of Dad’s old friends? And Dad has been too stubborn to actually talk to them, so they’ve been making sure everything’s okay without telling him? Which means that Bennett?—
“Bennett left because he was worried he’d get his dad in trouble?” I ask disbelievingly.
“He was scared his pa would find out, is more like it,” she says with a fond roll of her eyes. “But yes, that’s my guess. You should ask him about it.”
My head buzzes at the thought of there being another explanation for all of this. If Bennett didn’t leave because he didn’t care, then maybe I still have a chance.
It won’t be easy, but maybe Bennett’s more like my dad than I realized. They both seem to have a habit of being suspicious and always expecting the worst of people.
Fuck, dealing with Dad is going to be a nightmare.
I thought him finding out I’m pregnant was going to be bad, but this is going to be a total clusterfuck. Better the beast I know, I guess. It looks like sorting all of this out is going to be a little more complicated than I originally thought, though.
I’m sure it’ll be fine. If Sophia is right, Bennett and I will figure this out together. That’s all I can hope for right now.
Chapter Twenty
BENNETT
The soundof tires on the driveway sends me rushing to my bedroom window.
Ma left almost an hour ago, refusing to let me come along. I’ve been pacing and gnawing my thumbnail raw since she drove off, hoping against hope that she could somehow convince Maggie to come back.
Relief slams into me like a tidal wave when I see a familiar head of blonde hair in her passenger seat, but it’s immediately overwhelmed by fear.
Just because Maggie’s here doesn’t mean she’ll forgive me. It doesn’t mean she still wants anything to do with me. It doesn’t mean I still have a chance.
I guess it doesn’t change much. The only thing I can do is hope, just like before.
The short glimpse I get of Maggie as she walks up to the porch steps with Ma is enough to steal the breath from my lungs. She’s wearing the same thing she was this morning, an oversized hoodie and shorts, her hair in a bun, and I still can’t help but think she’s the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen.
The front door opens, and I scramble to run down the stairs, desperate to see Maggie again, to tell her everything I should have said from the start.
