LITMIR.BIZ

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pretty sure we’ll be it,” she replied. “The kids who get off at this stop are old enough to walk home by themselves.”

      “Then, maybe we shouldn’t be doing this. Maybe Cody will feel stupid about us being here.”

      “Are you kidding? He’s going to feel like a million bucks when he sees you. It will be the surprise of his young life.”

      “Yeah, but he already knows I was coming today. Maybe he would prefer to meet me at the house.”

      “Don’t worry about it. He’s going to be ecstatic to see you standing here. So just try to relax, okay?”

      Easier said than done. Kade was as anxious as an expectant father in a maternity ward. Bridget, however, didn’t have the look of woman who was about to give birth, not with those sexy curves of hers or all that soft blond hair shining in the sun.

      Curious about the day his son had come wailing into the world, he asked, “Who was with you when Cody was born?”

      She smoothed the front of her blouse, and then placed a hand against her stomach in what seemed like a gesture of remembrance. “My whole family was there. Mom, Grandma, Grandpa.”

      “Did any of them go into the delivery room with you?”

      “My mom did. She stayed by my side the entire time, coaching me to breathe and push and all of that.”

      Kade had gone to the hospital after his youngest sister was born and peered at her tiny face through the glass, but he hadn’t been directly involved in the birthing process. He’d helped plenty of mares during foaling, though, and loved the beauty of new life. “Was your labor difficult?”

      “It wasn’t easy, but it wasn’t especially difficult, either. Mostly it just seemed surreal. Me having a baby at the same hospital where I was born. An unwed mother just as my mom had been. In her day, that carried a bit of stigma. But her friends didn’t treat her badly because of it. They wanted my dad to settle down and offer to marry her.” Bridget continued to hold her hand against her stomach. “But after he quit coming around, they just felt sorry for us.”

      He couldn’t help from asking, “How much do your friends know about me?”

      “My close friends know the truth. But I’ve never confided in any casual acquaintances. Of course, the way Cody has been bragging about you lately, I’m sure that people are getting curious.”

      “Yeah, and once they see me, their tongues are really going to start wagging. A tall drink of water like me is hard to miss.”

      She shot him an amused look. “Did you just refer to yourself as a tall drink of water?”

      He shrugged, but he smiled, too. He liked making this kind of banter with her. “That’s what women call me.”

      “Really?” Her blue eyes all but sparkled. “What women?”

      “The kind who check me out.” He motioned to the house behind them. “I’ll bet there’s a hottie at that window right now, eyeing my butt.”

      “I know the hottie who lives there and she’s about eighty years old and plays bingo with my grandmother.”

      He laughed and bumped her shoulder. “I play a mean bingo myself.”

      She nudged him right back. “Don’t tell Grandma that. She’ll be dragging you to the senior center with her.”

      He contemplated what she’d told him earlier, about her grandmother thinking he should have been notified about Cody from the start. “At least Granny is on my side.”

      “She’s definitely going to like you.”

      “I appreciate that.” He needed an ally. “By the way, I have a gift for Cody in my truck. I didn’t want to show up empty-handed.” He quickly clarified, “And this doesn’t make me like your dad, Bridget. I don’t think giving gifts means that I can neglect my responsibilities as a father. It’s just something I want Cody to have.”

      “Okay. I understand. But what is it?”

      He decided to keep the details of the gift a mystery. “You’ll just have to wait and see.” As far as he was concerned, he was invoking some of the rights he’d lost and taking his first step toward being a parent. “I shouldn’t have to get your approval every time I give him something.”

      “Yes, you should. We should discuss everything that concerns our son.”

      “We are discussing it.”

      She rolled her eyes, but she let it pass, giving him a taste of freedom. While he was basking in his victory, she redirected his attention.

      “Look,” she said. “There’s Cody’s bus.”

      Kade spun around and saw the yellow vehicle rolling down the street, and within the beat of his heart, his big, bad confidence flew by the wayside. The man he’d always been, the loner who panicked at the sight of commitment, was as scared as a rabbit on the run. Only he wasn’t running. He was standing there, boots firmly planted, where the bus was preparing to stop.

      The first to disembark was a girl, a brunette he guessed to be about Cody’s age. She crossed the street and headed off by herself. The next two kids were also girls, redheads who appeared to be twins. He almost did a double take when he saw them. He figured them for around twelve. They acknowledged Bridget as they passed and gave Kade nosy glances.

      Cody appeared at the top of the bus steps, looking exactly like his pictures. His cowlick was misbehaving, causing pieces of his hair to spring in different directions, and as soon as he saw Kade, his mouth fell open.

      Another boy, a freckled redhead who resembled the girls who’d just gone by, was behind him saying, “Oh, man. Is that your dad?” and giving him an excited little shove. The driver, a middle-aged woman, reprimanded the ginger-haired boy, who Kade figured was probably the younger brother of the nosy twins.

      It was like watching a movie and being part of it at the same time. Cody finally exited the vehicle and walked up to Kade. For a kid who was supposed to be chatty, he was being awfully quiet.

      The other boy gawked at them as he made his way down the steps, nearly tripping on the road as his feet hit the ground.

      “That’s my friend,” Cody said. “His name is Jason.”

      “Hi, Jason.” Kade gave him a quick wave. He’d never expected Cody’s first words to him to be about someone else.

      “Hi,” Jason replied with a toothy grin. As he walked off, his smile still in place, he said, “See ya, Cody.”

      “Bye.” Cody grinned, too.

      And what a smile. Kade could hardly breathe. Should he shake his son’s hand? Lean down to hug him? Smooth his hair?

      “You surprised me,” Cody said, staring at him in what could only be described as wonder. By now, more kids were getting off the bus and looking their way.

      Kade couldn’t take credit for the surprise. “It was your mom’s idea.”

      Cody glanced over at her. “My dad’s really here, and at my bus stop, too, where everyone can see him.”

      “Yes, he’s really here.” Bridget came forward. “Why don’t we all go back to the house and I’ll make you guys a snack.”

      “Are you hungry?” Cody asked Kade.

      Food was the furthest thing from his mind. He was still having trouble breathing. But he didn’t want to put a damper on the mood so he said, “Your mom already fed me earlier, but I can always eat.”

      “Me, too.” Cody shifted his backpack. “What’s your favorite food?”

      And that was how the Q&A session began. The ten-year-old interviewed him on the walk home, relentless in his pursuit to know his father. Kade could barely keep up with the rapid

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