A Secret Colton Baby
So far, so good. No sign of whatever mysterious illness had plagued her mother.
For some reason Ellie thought of her parents. She knew what they’d do in this situation. As lifelong evangelistic missionaries on the African continent, they’d elevated the act of prayer to a fine art. She only wished they’d devoted as much effort to being parents and making them all a family. She hadn’t seen them in years, and even in her younger days, she’d stayed with a neighbor while they were off saving the world. They were too busy, too full of what they considered their life’s work, to spend time raising a daughter.
Ellie had often wondered why they’d even had her. Most likely, she’d been an accident. Ah well, dwelling on the past never changed anything. And she no longer prayed, because she’d spent her entire childhood praying her parents would want her. When her prayers had gone unanswered through the years, she’d sworn never to pray again.
Even though they’d had a late breakfast, soon it would be lunchtime on the ranch. As the only cook, Ellie knew she had to come up with something to feed the hardworking, hungry ranch hands. Luckily, she’d started on a big pot of chili the day before, and all she had to do was place the large cooking pot on the stove and break out a couple of bags of Fritos and shredded cheddar cheese.
Relieved that she could do this and still take care of Amelia, she knew the evening meal might be more of a challenge. She needed to do prep work now. A couple of days ago, she’d moved four whole chickens to the fridge from the freezer. She could roast those and make a pot of pinto beans and a huge bowl of rice. Simple but efficient.
She gave the chili another stir with the wooden spoon and returned to gaze at the sleeping baby. Footsteps in the hallway made her turn, wondering if the crew had broken for lunch early.
Not the ranch hands. Instead Theo, gazing first at her and then the baby. Ellie’s heart did a little stuttering dance as she stared at him. Broad shoulders, narrow waist, muscular arms. And that face, craggy and masculine, with that cute little bump on his nose where it had been broken. He was handsome and sexy, and so far out of her league it wasn’t funny. Even knowing this, she couldn’t keep from drinking him in with her eyes, even as she tried—and pretty much failed—to appear nonchalant.
“How’s she doing?” he asked, his gaze on Amelia.
“Fine.” She found a sudden need to turn away and stir the chili. “I’ve been watching her and there’s no sign of a fever. I’m guessing she’s not hungry yet since she’s been asleep since you left. Did you bring the formula and diapers?”
“I did. They’re on the counter.” The edge of huskiness in his voice made her look at him. He was still staring at the baby, something very much like tenderness flashing in his amazing green eyes.
Chest tight, she turned back to the simmering pot. “Lunch is almost ready. The ranch hands should be here any moment.”
“I told you that you didn’t have to cook since you’re taking care of the baby.”
“Then who would?” Her tone came out sharper than she’d intended. “If I don’t, the hands won’t have anything to eat.”
“Thank you.” He came to stand next to her, making every nerve in her body quiver. “I’m sorry. I thought I’d made it back in time to get the noon meal ready.”
She didn’t comment. It was eleven-thirty and the men ate at straight-up twelve.
When he touched her arm, she gave a little jump. Inhaling sharply, she took a step back from him, hoping if she put a little distance between them, she could regain her equilibrium. When she’d first applied for the job, she was so desperate for work, she’d barely noticed his rugged good looks. After all, she’d been nearly broke with nowhere to live but her car.
Now, almost a full week later, every time Theo came anywhere near her, she went weak in the knees and her entire body tingled.
Cleary, she needed to get over this.
“I’ve talked to my grandmother.” He frowned. “I wanted to ask her to help with the baby, but she sounds like she’s coming down with a cold.”
“That’s not good.” Ellie kept her voice steady, a bit startled at the odd rush of possessiveness she felt at the thought of someone else taking care of Amelia. “Maybe it would be better to see if you can find someone else to cook, at least until your grandmother gets better. I don’t mind.”
He gave her a long look, his green eyes keenly observant. “We’ll see. In the meantime, I’ll help you with dinner,” he said. “How about that?”
“Let’s get through lunch first,” she said. “If you don’t mind, I’ll get Amelia changed and fed. There are corn chips on the table, shredded cheese in the fridge and all they need to do is ladle the chili into their bowls.”
He nodded. “I can handle that.”
“Thank you.” Moving briskly, she washed her hands and then grabbed one of the cans of formula and read the instructions, just to make sure.
Once everything was mixed up in one of the bottles, she warmed it slightly in the microwave and shook it to make sure the heat distributed evenly. She squeezed a drop on her wrist, something she thought she’d seen on TV. “Perfect.”
More relieved than she’d care to admit, even to herself, she crossed over to where Amelia still slept. One quick glance at Theo, and the knot was back in the pit of her stomach. “I’ll just take her upstairs and feed and change her.”
“Sounds good.” Theo glanced at the clock. “The less exposure she has to others, the better, at least until we get her checked out. I’m going to see if Gemma can come by tonight after work, though I might have her stop by Gram Dottie’s first.”
The worry and affection in his voice when he spoke of his grandmother warmed her. “Just let me know,” she said. “I think I hear the guys.”
He gave her a panicked look, nearly making her laugh. Instead she picked up Amelia’s carrier, tucking the warm baby bottle on one side. She looped the bag with the diapers over her arm and hurried upstairs just as the back door opened and the hungry ranch hands began filing in.
Amelia woke with a startled little sound when they were halfway up the stairs. After one quick gasp, she scrunched up her little face and let out an ear-piercing wail. By the time Ellie had reached the landing, Amelia had begun to cry in earnest.
Making soothing sounds, Ellie hurried to her room. Once there, she dropped the diapers on the bed and hurried to get Amelia out of the carrier. No amount of rocking or murmuring endearments would soothe her. But the instant Ellie pressed the baby bottle against her lips, Amelia latched on, drinking so fast she hiccupped.
“What a beautiful baby you are,” Ellie murmured, her heart full. “I’m so sorry your mama won’t get to see you grow up.”
Cradling Amelia while she finished her bottle, Ellie wondered at this newfound surge of maternal emotion. She hadn’t spent a lot of time around babies, and it amazed her how tiny this one seemed.
Once Amelia finished her bottle, Ellie burped her, again copying something she’d seen on television. Amelia let out a satisfied belch.
Ellie kicked off her shoes and climbed onto her bed, holding Amelia close. She propped up a pillow and leaned back, resting while she gently rocked her charge.
A few seconds later, Amelia had gone back to sleep. Smiling, Ellie watched her. Once, before her stalker, she’d settled into a sort of Bohemian existence working at a bookstore in Boulder. She’d had friends, she’d been happy, though she’d often felt like she was floating along through life. Her stalker had changed that, and the constant panic had forced her to go on the run. Now she’d landed here. She wasn’t sure why, especially since she’d always wanted to travel, but she hadn’t felt this content in a long time.
* * *
By the time the lunch hour was over, Theo had a newfound respect for the job of ranch cook. Since coming back home, he hadn’t had to do much, Mrs. Saul had worked in the kitchen for over twenty years. When the plump white-haired lady had come to him and announced she wanted to retire, the entire ranch was caught off guard. She’d promised to stay until he’d found someone to replace her, and so she had. The transition from Mrs. Saul to Ellie Parker had gone seamlessly.
One tiny baby and everything had been thrown off balance. That was okay, he told himself. Once Gram Dottie took over nanny duty, everything here would be right back on track. He’d just have to pitch in until then. At least he had plans. Big ones, actually. He just had to find the right stock to get his breeding program underway.
Most people didn’t realize that the majority of broncos in the rodeos were bred specifically for that role. The best buckers had good confirmation and breeding. Theo figured if he couldn’t ride ’em, he’d breed ’em.
Until then, he’d help out in whatever way he could, including cooking. The men had been surprised to see him in the kitchen, but they’d been hungry and dug into the chili. Theo had fixed himself a bowl, too, and taken a seat at the table in the other room to eat with them. All the talk was on the upcoming Tulsa State Fair and Rodeo in Oklahoma.
Pretending it didn’t bother him talking about something that had been his favorite activity in the world was something he had gotten better at. Theo laughed and joked, argued about who he thought was the best bull rider, hoping and praying they didn’t ask him about the bronc riders, whether saddle bronc or bareback. Bareback had been his sport, and even thinking about what he would be missing usually filled him with a brooding kind of anger.
Maybe they had heard this, or perhaps his hired cowboys had a lot of common sense, because bronc riding never came up.
Most of them had seconds, complimenting Theo on the chili. He smiled and told them to thank Ellie. No one asked about the baby, no doubt remembering the way the conversation had gone that morning.
Finally, one by one, they pushed back their chairs and headed out to get back to work. Relieved, Theo gathered up the dirty dishes, rinsed them off and put them in the dishwasher. He made sure the burner was off and left the pot on the stove to cool.
He made a quick call to a local alarm monitoring service and left a message on their answering machine asking for an appointment the next day to have motion detectors and whatever else came with a home alarm installed.
Someone called him back in two minutes, confirming the appointment for Monday afternoon. He imagined they didn’t get much business. Here in Dead River, the country folks rarely even bothered to lock their doors.
Theo had been the same. In the past. No longer. He planned to make sure the house was locked up tight each night before he went to bed. An alarm would be additional insurance. Whoever had broken in, whether he’d been after the baby or Ellie, wouldn’t be able to get in so easily next time.
As he tried to decide whether or not to take Ellie her lunch upstairs, his cell phone rang. The caller ID showed Gemma.
“Hey,” he answered. “I thought you weren’t going to call until after you got off work.”
“I wasn’t,” Gemma answered, sounding stressed and more upset than he’d ever heard her. “But Gram Dottie just came in.”
“Good. I told her to get her tail in there if she didn’t start feeling better.”
“Oh, Theo.” To his shock, he could tell his sister was on the verge of tears. “She walked in the front door, and then she collapsed. We’ve moved her back to the isolation area. The doctors think Gram Dottie has the same thing Mimi Rand had.”
Chapter 3
Stunned, Theo wasn’t sure he’d heard correctly. “What? I just talked to her and she didn’t sound that sick. Now you’re telling me... How is that even possible?”
“I don’t know. No one even knows what this disease is, never mind how it’s transmitted. Dr. Rand thinks it’s a virus. Either way, it’s not good. She’s in really bad shape, Theo.”
“I’m on my way down there,” he said, pacing the length of the kitchen. The rich smell of the chili now made him feel queasy.
“No. You can’t. There’s a reason we have the victims isolated. You can’t risk exposing yourself.”
“I don’t care about myself.” He swore. “You know how much Gram means to me.”
“We all feel that way,” Gemma said. “And you may not care about yourself, but you have to think of the baby. You can’t risk her.” She took a deep breath. “Right now you’d be denied entrance anyway. Only essential medical personnel are allowed in, and we have to put on protective-wear as a precaution.”
Theo cursed again. “How bad off is Gram?”
“Right now she’s stable.” Another shaky breath, the sound coming through as more of a warning than any words could be. “The CDC is sending a team. Flint knows this already, but they’re talking about a quarantine.”
Theo stopped pacing, trying to understand. “A quarantine? Of what, the clinic?”
“No. Dead River. The entire town.” And then Gemma, his normally unflappable sister, began to cry.
Theo did his best to console her, well aware she most likely hadn’t shared every detail with him. “What about the baby?” he asked, taking a deep breath. “She was with Mimi right before she died. We need to get her checked out.”
“You’re right,” Gemma said. “And you and anyone else who might have come into contact with her. I can’t come by tonight, but I work the afternoon shift tomorrow, so I’m off in the morning. How about I swing by the ranch and check her out then?”
“That’d be perfect.”
“Then that’s what I’ll do.” With that, Gemma told him she had to go back to work and ended the call.
Stunned, Theo could only stare at his phone. He felt he needed to do something, anything, but he didn’t know what. If this virus had been a bronc, he would have climbed on and ridden it into submission. But it wasn’t, and in reality, there was nothing he could do but stand by helplessly and watch.
And that summed it up. He was a rodeo cowboy, a bareback bronc riding champion, and not much else. He couldn’t even help his own grandmother—the woman who’d raised him—when she needed assistance.
But he could—and would—protect Amelia. His tiny daughter had no one else. He’d somehow figure out a way to be a good father, even though he had no idea how. Again the spicy scent of chili filled his nostrils. This time, the smell filled him with purpose. Ellie had done nothing but work all day. She had to be starving.
He found a cookie sheet that would work as a tray and filled a bowl with corn chips before ladling the chili over that. Topping if off with a generous amount of shredded cheddar cheese, he folded a paper towel to act as a napkin, grabbed a spoon and a can of cola and carried the tray up to Ellie’s room.
It was impossible to knock with his hands full, so he didn’t bother. The door was cracked. He used his elbow to nudge it the rest of the way open.
Carrying the tray, he paused just inside the room. Both Ellie and the baby were asleep on the bed—Ellie sitting up, her back supported by both pillows, still cradling the infant securely in her arms.
Carefully and quietly, he placed the tray on the dresser and stared at the pair. Bathed in the soft light from the window, Ellie looked almost angelic. Looking at her and the sleeping baby made the back of his throat ache.
Shaking his head, he scoffed at himself. Still, there was a particular glow about her. Maybe it was one of those things females got when they were around babies. Who knew?
He took the opportunity to study her—and his child, too. Something about the scene calmed him, the way beauty always did. Ellie’s exotic, high cheekbones caught the light, bringing a soft flush to her creamy skin. The delicacy of her face seemed almost at odds with her lean, athletic body. She’d pulled her hair, a soft brown color, back into a ponytail. The soft strands that had escaped framed and highlighted her face.
And the baby... Chest tight, he moved closer to examine her. Perfect little rosebud of a mouth, dusky skin like her mother’s. Innocent and perfect, too much so for the likes of someone like him. What did he know about being a father? His dad had become a drunk after their mother was killed in a car accident. His father had been in and out of their lives, showing up just often enough to humiliate his sons. He’d finally abandoned their family, much to everyone’s unspoken relief. Gram had taken over, filling the void as best she could. She’d been both mother and father, grandmother and teacher to Flint, Theo and Gemma.
Standing there in the quiet room, midday sunlight warm on his arm, Theo faced the fact that the world he’d taken for granted continued to crumble down around him. Losing the ability to rodeo had seemed like the worst thing that could ever happen, even though everyone had kept telling him he should consider himself lucky that he’d survived.
But now his beloved Gram was seriously ill, and this tiny, helpless human had been entrusted to his care. Him, of all people, who had always taken a certain sort of pride in being the least settled person he knew. Despite his satisfaction with the life he’d chosen, he’d never wanted to fail his grandmother, though deep down inside, he knew he had. Gram had loved him anyway. Now, no matter what, he knew he couldn’t let his daughter down.
“Theo? Are you all right?” Ellie’s voice, husky with sleep, startled him. Her bright blue eyes were fixed on him, though still groggy with sleep.
“I hope I didn’t wake you,” he said, feeling surprisingly awkward. “I brought you lunch.”
She shifted, sliding back to sit up, careful not to disturb the baby. “Are the hands all fed?”
“Yep. And I cleaned everything up. Later, I’ll need you to tell me what I need to do to prepare for the evening meal.”
“I will.” Her heavy-lidded gaze slid past him to the tray. “But right now I’m famished. Would you mind taking Amelia so I can eat?”
“Sure.” This time he didn’t hesitate. He figured if he did this often enough, soon he’d be completely comfortable with holding the baby.
The transfer could have been awkward, but Theo just held out his arms and let Ellie take care of it.
“I’ve got her,” he said, half smiling, barely noticing as Ellie moved to take the bowl of chili from the tray and begin eating with a quiet and intent efficiency.
The rumble of his voice caused Amelia’s eyes to open. Colton green. Of course. He’d read somewhere that less than five percent of the world’s population had green eyes.
“Hi there, little baby,” he crooned, trying not to feel foolish.
Looking up from her meal, Ellie made a sound.
“What?” he asked, reluctantly dragging his gaze from the baby.
“She has a name.” Ellie’s soft voice carried a bit of steel. “Amelia. You don’t have to always call her baby or the infant.”
“I wasn’t aware I did.” He shrugged, refusing to let a small detail like that bother him, despite what Ellie thought it revealed. “Sorry.”
Too busy finishing her lunch, Ellie didn’t respond, though he could feel her gaze on him as he gently rocked the baby. Gram Dottie would love Amelia, he knew. Now she just had to get well so they could meet.
Something of his worry must have shown in his face.
“Are you all right?” Ellie asked again. “You look... Is something wrong?”
“Yes.” He took a deep breath, needing to get it off his chest. “My sister called while you were asleep. Gram Dottie collapsed at the clinic.” Despite his best intentions, his voice cracked a little. “The doctors think she has the same thing that killed Mimi Rand. They’ve got her in isolation.”
“Oh, Theo.” Ellie’s eyes widened. “I’m so sorry.”
He nodded, working really hard to keep his expression neutral. “Gemma says they think it’s some kind of new virus. The CDC is sending a team and they’re even talking about quarantining the entire town.”
“What?” Ellie hand moved to her throat. “I’ve never heard of them doing that, except maybe in movies. It must be really bad.”
“Don’t panic.” His words were for both of them. “We’ve got some really sharp doctors at the clinic, and Dr. Rand vowed to find a cure. He’s working around the clock, despite being really broken up by the death of his ex-wife.”
Ellie nodded, her blue eyes huge in her suddenly pale face. Her cheeks flushed, she looked away. “You’re right. Of course. There’s no need to let my imagination get the best of me. I hope your grandmother gets well quickly.”
“She will,” he said with a confidence he didn’t feel. “Anyway, Gemma is going to come by tomorrow and check us all out. I can’t risk the baby’s—Amelia’s—health by taking her down to the clinic.”
“I agree.” Her brow creased in a dainty frown. “But it’s still safe to go into town, isn’t it?”
“Of course.”
“Good. I need to pick up a few things.” She hesitated, and then continued, sounding a bit sheepish. “Though now that my stalker might have found me, I’m a little bit scared to go.”
“Don’t be.” Here Theo could speak with confidence. “I’ve called a company to come out and install an alarm. They’ll be here tomorrow. And as far as going into town is concerned, I’ll go with you, like a sort of bodyguard.”
He could tell his words pleased her from the dusky rose that suffused her face. “Thank you,” she said. “If you don’t mind, I need to make a trip in the morning, as long as it won’t interfere with the alarm installation.”
“They’re supposed to come around two, so if we go early, we should be fine. I’ll need to find out what time my sister plans to stop by, but we can work around that. I want to make sure none of us is sick before we leave the ranch and risk infecting others.”
She nodded. “Good point. Do you have any idea what the early symptoms are?”
“It’s flu-like. From what I remember Gemma telling me, it’d probably be fever and nausea, weakness or tiredness, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose and maybe body aches.”
She nodded. “That’s kind of what I thought. So far, Amelia hasn’t exhibited any of those.”
“What about you?”
“Nothing.” Tilting her head, she studied him. “And you? Have you been feeling all right?”
He started to answer, then checked himself. “I’m still dealing with fallout from my rodeo accident, but no flu-like symptoms yet.”
“I’m sorry.” Her soft voice matched the softening in her blue eyes. “What exactly happened to you?” She blushed, then shook her head. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to pry.”
Even now, six months later, he could still barely talk about it. To anyone else. But for some reason, he wanted to tell her. “I got thrown by a horse. A crazy, completely out of control bronc. My skull was broken, I had a right clavicle fracture, messed up my hip and my ankle was shattered.”
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to continue. “But the worst thing was that my spine got messed up. All the other injuries were fixable. Meaning, I could heal and go back to competing. But that damn spinal cord injury nearly paralyzed me. They told me I can never ride again. I’m lucky I’m even able to walk.”
“You don’t sound as if you think you’re lucky,” she commented.
Which meant he hadn’t successfully hidden the bitterness. How could he, when it rode so close to the surface?
“Rodeo was my life,” he said quietly. “With that gone...”
Her chin came up. He was starting to recognize that habit of hers. Gesturing at Amelia, still cocooned in his arms, she gave him a look that reminded him of Gram Dottie when she was about to make a point.
“With that gone,” Ellie threw his words back at him. “You now have time to focus on something else. Someone else. Amelia. Your daughter.”
* * *
Ellie hadn’t meant to be so bold. Judging from the total shutdown on Theo’s rugged face, she’d gone entirely too far. Still, she didn’t regret her words, nor would she call them back.
Amelia had just lost her mother. She deserved a father who’d give her 100 percent.
Theo had given Ellie a hard stare and then turned without a word, placed Amelia in her bassinette and walked away.
