Page 68 of Mister Cowboy

“Expecting? Like a baby?” The words sounded ridiculous even to her own ears.

“Yes. We just found out. I’m due in late September.”

Nadia’s smile was wide and a bit…triumphant. “I’m only a few weeks along, but we’re so happy. Brecken has insisted on coming with me to the first doctor’s appointment. He really is one of the good ones, isn’t he?”

The door to Brecken’s office swung open, and he appeared. Her breath caught in her throat and butterflies took over her stomach. He turned his head and their eyes met. The smile on her face fell. He looked tired and crumpled. His usual perfectly tailored outfit was wrinkled, the tie hanging loose around his neck.

A pit of unease opened in her stomach, and she knew it was true.

He started to walk toward her, but Nadia stepped in front of him. She snaked a hand up his chest and rested her head against him. January’s stomach dropped as she watched Brecken’s face go pale, his jaw flex. Then Nadia’s eyes fell on January, and they turned icy.

“I just told her the good news,” Nadia said.

Brecken recoiled away from Nadia as if he just realized she was touching him. He stalked toward her, surprising her by kissing her roughly. A whiff of alcohol hit her nose, and she pulled back. He’d been drinking, but for how long? Is this why she hadn't heard from him?

“Have you been drinking?”

Grabbing her hand, Brecken pulled her into his office and slammed the door behind them so hard she jumped.

“Brecken, what the hell is going on? Is it true?”

His voice was so quiet she barely heard his response. “Yes.”

“When—” her voice caught in her throat. “When was the last time you slept with her?”

“I told you it was before you.”

“When?”

“The day before you started at the ranch.”

It shouldn’t have hurt so much that he’d slept with Nadia after they’d met. They’d been nothing. Yet, it stung.

She waited for him to say something. Anything. He had a shell-shocked look on his face that she wanted to slap right off.

“What now?”

“I don’t know. I need some time to figure this out.”

She hadn’t meant what was next for them, but his response put a question mark over the future of their relationship. What the hell was she supposed to say to that? If she corrected him, she came off looking like a cold-hearted woman who didn’t care about the baby, but if she didn’t, then she ran the risk of him thinking that she was okay with whatever space he needed to put between them. That she wasn’t willing to stand by his side through whatever twists and turns this baby would put in front of them.

“I have an obligation to Nadia whether I like it or not. Seeing you could be problematic.”

“Problematic?” Her eyes widened as she repeated the word back to him.

He ran a hand through his hair, and she almost had a pang of sympathy for him. Almost.

“Fuck, January. I’m going to be a father. My priorities have to change.”

“I don’t see how that has anything to do with us. Unless, of course, you’ve decided that you really want to be with her instead.”

“I’m not my father. I won’t have a baby and just shit on my responsibilities.”

“I’m not asking you to.”

He ran both hands through his dark mane this time and blew out a breath. “I just need some time to figure this out.”

“Fine,” she said, heading to the door and placing her hand on the knob. She took one last look at him. “Take all the time you need.”