Page 3 of The Maverick’s Forever Home (Montana Mavericks: Behind Closed Doors #2)

M aggie stared after the man in the cowboy hat.

The mix of defeat and frustration in his pale blue eyes had been all too familiar.

It hadn’t lasted more than thirty seconds, but in that time, she’d felt an instant connection and understanding with the man.

Whatever he was dealing with, he was struggling and so was she.

Cody had yet to physically run away from her, but there was no denying he kept his distance.

And it made sense. She’d left him, over and over, and gotten so sick this last time.

He was nine, he didn’t need to worry about the health and safety of his mother.

That was why she’d done her best to minimize how serious her illness was.

Besides, all of that was in the past. She was taking care of herself and getting stronger every day.

She glanced down the empty hall and hoped the cowboy would make things right with his little girl. “Good luck,” she whispered, meaning it. Right or wrong, there was a part of her that found comfort in the knowledge that she wasn’t the only one struggling with her parental duties.

“Ma,” Cody called out.

Right . While the cowboy took care of his daughter, she needed to focus on her son.

“Come sit.” Cody patted the back of the blue plastic chair that had been placed at the front of the room.

She sat—facing Cody’s class—and did her best to ignore the churning of her stomach.

“Class, I want you to welcome Cody’s mom. She’s here to celebrate Cody’s birthday with us.” Ms. Jalen stood beside Maggie’s chair. “I’ve also asked Ms. Cooper if she’ll tell us about her job. You see, Ms. Cooper does some really important and unique work that I think you’ll find fascinating.”

Maggie smiled in gratitude at the woman’s praise but wasn’t sure how best to proceed.

“Hello. I’m Maggie Cooper, Cody’s mom. I work in health care—mostly women, children and pregnant women in underserved regions all over the world.

” She wasn’t sure what to say next. “Why don’t you all ask me questions?

” She hadn’t expected so many of the kids to raise their hands, but they did, and she called on as many as she could.

No, she wasn’t a doctor. Yes, she gave babies medicine.

Sometimes she helped bring in specialists to treat a cleft palate, dentistry or ophthalmologic care.

And the weirdest things she’d eaten while traveling had been a snake,

“Cody says you’re gone lots.” The girl with oversize glasses rested her elbows on her desk and asked, “Do you miss him?”

“Jenny,” Ms. Jalen murmured.

The girl pushed up her glasses. “Sorry, Ms. Jalen, Ms. Cooper.”

“I do miss Cody. Very much.” She found herself explaining.

“But I know Cody has a loving family to take care of him. He has a warm house, plenty of food and clean water to drink, and he gets to go to school with his friends. If he gets sick, there’s a doctor nearby to cure him.

But a lot of the people I visit don’t have that.

There are moms and their children who might not have food or water or medicine to help them get better.

It’s my job to find those in need and help them.

” That, and a long ago promise she’d made, was why she couldn’t walk away from her job.

“That’s cool.” Jenny was all smiles now.

Another student piped up and said, “My mom says you should always try to help people.”

A few other students nodded or said, “Cool,” or, “That’s awesome.” But the thing that stood out most was the pride on Cody’s face. She couldn’t remember the last time he’d looked at her that way.

“Hi, Ms. Cooper. My name is Wyatt.” The boy sat back against his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. “Why doesn’t Cody’s dad take care of him when you’re gone?”

Her palms were instantly dewy. Telling Cody’s classmates that the man biologically responsible for Cody’s existence was a selfish jerk that wanted nothing to do with his son wasn’t appropriate—even if it was true.

This was one of those moments when she’d be happy if the ground beneath her opened up and swallowed her whole. Instead, all eyes turned her way—

“Oh, I just got a message from the office.” Ms. Jalen looked up from her computer. “I need a volunteer to go to the office to pick up our math worksheets. Any takers?”

And just like that, several students were up and vying for the job.

Maggie found it highly unlikely that Ms. Jalen received such a conveniently timed message from the office, but she was eternally grateful for the teacher’s maneuvering.

A quick glance Cody’s way told her Wyatt’s question had bothered her son. He knew about his father and that he’d chosen not to be a part of Cody’s life. But knowing it didn’t mean Cody was okay with it. Or that he’d want it brought up on his birthday.

“Cody, why don’t you go, too?” Ms. Jalen waved him over. “You can get your birthday sticker while you’re there.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Cody rolled his eyes and acted like this request was beneath him. But Maggie could tell he was happy as he hurried from the classroom. And, as long as he was happy, she was happy.

She turned to Ms. Jalen, eager to return the favor. “How can I help?” she asked.

“If you could pass out these worksheets for our next lesson, that would be great.” Ms. Jalen pointed at one of the stacks of papers.

She picked up the worksheets. “Tell me if there’s anything else I can do to help. I’m especially good at organizing things.”

Ms. Jalen smiled up at her. “Really? Okay, but remember you offered.”

Maggie laughed. “I will.”

Ms. Jalen took her up on her offer, and Maggie did her best to weed out the chaos in the colorful room. The mindless work did wonders to alleviate her nerves.

By the time she was following Cody to the cafeteria for lunch, she had her anxiety well under control.

As soon as she stepped foot in the cafeteria, she was transported back in time. Not much had changed since she’d enjoyed her own school lunches here. Fresh paint, updated cafeteria tables and new black velvet curtains framed the stage that occupied the back wall.

“Over here, Ma.” Cody nudged her side.

“Lead the way.” She smiled down at him. She wasn’t all that thrilled about eating from the lunch line, but they were serving pizza and that’s what Cody wanted.

Pizza was not on her doctor-approved gut-healthy food list. Recovery from an intestinal parasite as severe as her case was no easy thing.

Every day, she had to eat the right foods, get plenty of rest and drink lots of water.

Which was why she’d packed Cody’s lunchbox with a yogurt and some raw veggies for herself.

“Think I can get an extra piece? Since it’s my birthday?” Cody rubbed his hands together.

“No harm in asking.” She was more than a little surprised over how excited he was over school cafeteria pizza.

“Hey.” A hand tugged on the back of Cody’s shirt, causing them both to turn around. “Is it your birthday, too?” The little girl pointed at the birthday sticker on her shirt.

Maggie instantly recognized her. If the mismatched knee socks didn’t give her away, the pom-pom topped birthday hat would have done the trick. “I saw you in your hat earlier.” A quick inspection showed no sign of the girl’s father. “Happy birthday.”

“Uh-huh. Happy birthday.” Her smile was 100 percent pure adorableness.

“Thanks.” Cody clearly wasn’t interested in getting to know the girl, but the little girl didn’t pick up on that.

“I’m five.” She held up all five fingers. “How owd are you? Wots, huh? You are super tall.” She worked hard to get that l out.

Cody took that as a compliment. “Yep. I’m nine.”

“Wow.” She counted off her fingers, then held them up. “See.”

Cody glanced from her hand to her face and sighed. “One more.” He reached over and unfolded one more finger. “That’s nine.”

“I know.” She giggled. “You are super smart.” She beamed at Cody.

Her son’s smile confirmed he was definitely enjoying all the praise. “I know more ’cuz I’m older, is all.”

“’Kay.” But she kept right on smiling at Cody.

“I got you strawberry milk.” There he was, the cowboy with the soulful eyes—and a carton of milk in each hand.

Maggie had been so entertained by the two kids that she hadn’t noticed the arrival of the little girl’s father. How could she have missed him? Up close, it was hard not to notice him. He was big and broad and—honestly—incredibly handsome.

Hot, even. What? No. She didn’t like where her train of thought was headed. Better to focus on the adorableness of the little girl and not assess the hotness of the hunky cowboy. What was she thinking?

“Daddy, he’s a birthday boy.” She pointed at Cody. “See his sticker?”

“I do.” His smile was slow to build but it sure packed a punch. “Happy birthday.”

Oh, goodness. Maggie hadn’t been prepared for the tingles that smile triggered.

“Thanks.” Cody shrugged. “It’s not a big deal.”

“It is. It is.” The little girl grabbed Cody’s arm. “Birthdays are the most biggest important days ever.”

“Birthdays are the biggest important days ever.” Maggie had never met a more adorable little girl. Ever.

“This is Delilah, by the way. I’m her dad, Braden Parker.” He went to hold his hand out, realized he was still holding a milk carton and chuckled.

That chuckle was husky and entirely too appealing. She swallowed, hard, against the lump in her throat. “I’m Maggie. Maggie Cooper.” Stop staring. Stop staring . She tried but failed miserably.

“This is your son?” Braden nodded at Cody.