Page 3 of Sweet Surprise (Honeysuckle, Texas #2)

Stunned didn’t begin to describe the multitude of emotions running through Carson’s system at the moment.

Everything from scared, to angry, to confused, to downright flabbergasted winning out on the top of the emotional ladder.

When Jess had upped and left college, all she’d told him was she’d decided to marry Todd.

He had no idea what or why, but the written note had given him no chance to ask questions.

Instead, he’d spent weeks debating if he should call and ask how she was, only to shove his phone in his pocket and tell himself if she wanted to talk to him she never would have married that lowlife. Now, only one word came to mind. “How?”

Her eyes widened and he shook his head.

“I understand how the birds and the bees work, what I don’t understand is how didn’t you know?”

“I’ve been asking myself the same thing ever since finding out. It honestly never occurred to me that one night could possibly have been the cause of my pregnancy. Todd and I had dated for most of the school year. Logic told me he was the father.”

Logic. Feeling his hands clench at his sides into tight fists, he stretched his fingers and forced a deep breath. About to open his mouth with a string of angry questions popping into his head, Mason reappeared at the table, sidling up to his mother and returning to his artwork.

For the next little bit, they finished their meals, though to Carson every bite tasted like sawdust. He had zero desire to eat, but he also had zero desire to alarm Mason. Could it be possible that paternal instincts would kick in so quickly? Didn’t they need time to grow?

“Do you design houses for real?” Mason asked without looking up.

His heart squeezed. Somehow he had to tamp down the emotions circling inside of him and form clear and calm words. “Sort of. I buy and sell houses and usually that means some simple drawings to show the contractors what I want them to do.”

“Cool.” Raising his head to meet Carson’s gaze, a smile spread across the young boy’s face. “I think it would be way cool to see your drawings come to life.”

So much of the turmoil scrambling about inside him seemed to settle at this young boy’s infections smile.

“Yes. Way cool.” Maybe if circumstances permitted, Carson could show his son some of his before and after photos along with his drawings.

His son . Suddenly his heart lurched in his chest and threatened to lodge in his throat.

Surprise, shock, and even anger, now settled into stunned realization.

A son with the only woman he could never quite forget.

Through the years he told himself that like the old 70s song, he probably remembered her more fondly than reality was.

Except, he hadn’t forgotten how beautiful she was, and the sweet smile on her face and sheer pride and joy reflected in her eyes as she watched Mason return to his drawings, told Carson she was definitely the kindhearted person he remembered. And still missed.

When Agnes showed up with the bill, he and Jess both reached for the check. Shaking his head, he fought off the tingling sensation shooting up his arm, and stared her in the eyes. “This one is on me.”

Was that relief he saw cloak her expression? “Thank you.”

Yep. She was tight on money. Made sense raising a young boy. Especially one who ate every single crumb from his plate. “I guess with your husband so sick, working is tough?”

She scoffed at his comment. “He didn’t need to be sick to not work, and for the record, he’s my ex-husband.”

Ex? Okay, that was good. Maybe. “How long have you been divorced?”

Leaning closer to her son, she ruffled his hair. “Sweetie, would you please go ask the waitress to bring me another drink?”

Quickly setting his pencils down, the kid nodded and sprang from his seat in search of Agnes.

Her gaze fixed on her son, as soon as he was out of earshot, she faced Carson.

“Less than a year. I tried to make it work, really I did. I thought it was best for Mason if I stuck it out, but then one day I saw the crushed look on Mason’s face when Todd told him to stop with the stupid drawings and grow up.

I’m sure it wasn’t the first time I’d seen that much hurt in his eyes, but it was the first time I realized that no father at all was better than a bad one.

Of course, getting sick gave Todd a legitimate excuse not to keep up with his child support checks, and then, when the DNA tests came through, Todd wanted nothing to do with either of us. ”

That made little sense to Carson. He had lots of friends who’d married someone with children and they loved those kids as much as their own.

Then again, Carson always thought Todd was an arrogant, conceited guy who most Texans would describe as all hat and no cattle.

A part of him wished he hadn’t been right.

Then again, if Todd had turned into a good husband and father, Carson wouldn’t know he had a son.

Agnes returned with a drink in hand, Mason at her side, and the change from their lunch as Carson scrambled for what to do next.

He needed to think, but there wasn’t enough time for that.

Now that she’d told him her news, for all he knew, she would get in her car and drive back to Dallas. “Want to go for a walk?”

Mason’s head whipped around to face him and his eyes brightened. “Can we go to the park? I saw corn hole courts.”

Somehow that made Carson want to smile. Despite everything he was thinking and feeling, just looking at this young boy made everything seem okay. “You like corn hole?”

The fire started to go out in his eyes. “I used to, but I haven’t played in a long time.”

“Then corn hole it is.” Carson pushed to his feet and waved Jess and Mason ahead.

Walking down Main Street, Carson began to feel less…stressed. He pointed out the candle shop. “This belongs to my sister Jillian. When she said she wanted to open a candle shop, we thought she was completely insane. Turns out she knew more than any of us.”

“I love candles.” Jess smiled at the goods in the window and his heart tripped the same way it did when he was near her all those years ago. Dang, what a mess.

A couple of storefronts away, he pointed to Corn Hole Heaven. “My mother’s two sisters own this store. Honeysuckle is the corn hole capital of Texas.”

“Really?” Mason seemed to study each item in the window.

The kid was taking it all in. Every window, every shop, his eyes seemed to be filled with the same wonder as a kid on Christmas morning.

Not any kid, his son. How the heck did his world change on a dime?

The same way all their fates had shifted the day they found their mother snagged on the fence.

Life was always full of surprises, though this plot twist was a doozy.

As soon as the park came within view, Mason practically danced in place. “Can I run ahead?”

Carson could see the hesitancy in Jess’s eyes. Not sure what his place was in this particular situation, he nudged her arm gently and when she turned to him, he gave a slight nod of his head.

“Go on,” Jess smiled at her son, “we’ll be right behind you.”

He’d taken two more steps when it suddenly struck him that fate may have just put the answer to everyone’s problems right in his lap.

Throughout the years since leaving college, she’d often thought of Carson, of how her life might have been different if she hadn’t found out she was pregnant and married Todd.

She and Carson had sat beside each other for two semesters of statistics and then again for micro and macro economics.

They’d been friendly. Somehow when she was stressing the most about a test or project, he’d make her laugh, or at least smile.

Eventually they’d gone from classmates to friends.

They’d gone out to lunch or dinner a few times, usually with a crowd of friends; her favorite pastime had been bowling.

Todd always joined them for that. She remembered how Todd always tried to show up Carson, but Carson always beat him.

One man tried so hard to be a big shot and the other simply was.

She’d finally figured it out one night at a frat party.

Todd had drank way too much, he was making a total fool of himself, and when she tried to get him away from the party he’d gotten really loud and obnoxious.

Called her every name in the book. Carson walked in just as Todd had shouted to her that she wasn’t good enough for him, would never be good enough for him.

Unsteady on his feet, Todd swung his arms without regard for who was nearby, when Carson grabbed it, twisted it behind his back, and without saying a word, shoved Todd forward and didn’t stop until he’d pushed Todd out the front door.

When she’d started to run after him, Carson stood in front of her, leveled his gaze with hers, and softly said, “You’re worthy of a king, not a drunk. ”

They’d spent the rest of the night together, had a few drinks, and somehow the night got away from them, in more ways than one.

The next day, she’d decided she was done with Todd.

When they’d first started dating Todd had been fun, and kind, and hard to resist, but over time, he’d slowly changed, drank more, argued more, and she hated to think how the night might have turned if Carson hadn’t walked in.

She was done with him, and very much wanted to see where things with Carson could go.

They’d agreed to take it slow, done more things without large groups of friends and fellow students, gone to movies, dinners, hung out just talking for hours.

No more spending the nights together. He’d been respectful in every sense of the word.

That lasted for all of two weeks and then—then she’d taken that pregnancy test and everything changed.

“Will you be staying long?”

She heard his voice, but her mind was still in Austin almost ten years ago. “I’m sorry. What did you say?”

“How long will you be staying in Honeysuckle?” His gaze on Mason, his voice felt a shade unsteady.

“I haven’t really thought it through. Coming was a bit of an impulse.”

Carson chuckled and for the first time since she’d dropped the bomb on him, he seemed more at ease. “That sounds like the Jessica I knew and, well… knew.”

“I suppose, if you’d be okay with it, we could stay a couple of days.” There was no way she could afford a good hotel, but maybe a bed and breakfast. Maybe stay a few days. “Is there a hotel in town?”

“A very nice one. There’s also a motel on the northern outskirts of town.”

She nodded. “Is there a bed and breakfast?”

“Several.” His eyes gave away nothing of what was going on in his mind.

“Mom.” Mason came running up to them. “Some kids asked me to play with them. Can I?”

“I don’t know. Can you?”

“Mom.” Mason rolled his eyes the way only a nine year old could. “May I?”

As usual, her son made her smile—oddly enough, just like his father, his real father. “Yes, go on.”

Carson had stopped walking and was staring after her son. “Does he have a lot of friends in Dallas?”

“Not really. Dallas isn’t a small town.” She didn’t want to say that they lived in an affordable, but rough neighborhood. It was better Mason played inside.

“No, it’s not. I can’t imagine having grown up anywhere but here.”

All she’d seen of the town and the people in the last couple of hours was Main Street, the café, and a few shop windows, but already she understood what he meant.

“Listen.” Carson stopped and turned to look at her. “I don’t mean to be forward, but there’s room at the ranch for you and Mason.”

Of all the things she’d expected him to say, that was not one of them. “I can’t impose on your family like that.”

He shook his head and blinking a moment, he seemed to force a smile. It took a few more seconds for the smile to reach his eyes, like maybe he wasn’t fully sure of anything himself. “It’s not an imposition and technically, they’re Mason’s family too.”

“I don’t know.” Looking to where Mason was laughing and playing with the other kids, she needed to be smart. “I bet he’d like seeing a real ranch.”

“Then it’s settled. I’ll just call ahead and tell Mom to expect company.” His gaze drifted off to where Mason had just landed a hole in one and was cheering as if he’d won the Irish Sweepstakes. “My mother will be over the moon.”

“Will she?”

His head snapped around to face her again. Slowly, his eyes narrowed. “I gather Todd’s mother wasn’t over the moon with her grandson.”

She shrugged. “You have to figure anyone who raised Todd wouldn’t be much better with a grandson.

She wanted a girl. Behaved as if it was my fault I gave birth to a boy.

So, no she wasn’t over the moon. She was actually overjoyed to learn that Mason wasn’t her son’s child.

You might say, they both washed their hands of us. ”

Carson frowned. “Does Mason know?”

“That his father wants nothing to do with him?” She shook her head. “Todd didn’t have much to do with Mason when we were married. Even less since the divorce.”

“Listen.” He slowly reached for her hand. “There’s a lot to work out, but I promise you, everything will be all right from now on.”

Oh, she really hoped so. Not for her, but for her son. Maybe, just maybe, now Mason would have the life she’d always wanted her son to have.