Baby Girl: Dare to Love Page 8

  Krista laughed. “When Kyle first came back home, he was overweight. You know when he was living in Austin, he was eating out all the time, not exercising, and sitting behind a desk. He lost about seventy-five pounds when he started managing the ranch.”

  “Wow!” So he knew her struggle. She smiled at the thought of a chunky Kyle. It didn’t seem possible.

  TEN

  Jemma walked inside the Cosgrove home amazed at the commotion in the dining room. There had to be at least fifteen people roaming around the house. Thank goodness, Krista was standing next to her and handled introductions.

  “This is my sister-in-law Megan. She’s married to our brother Justin.” She nodded to a short blonde woman, stood next to Kyle’s mother. “The little tyke in front of her is their son Ryder.”

  Two little girls with ran into the room and straight to Krista. “Those are my handfuls, Cara, and Sylvia.” She smiled as a handsome man joined them. “This is my husband, David. Honey, this is Jemma. She’s a friend of Kyle’s.”

  David broke into a smile. He was nice looking, she thought. He didn’t have the rugged look that Kyle had, but he was handsome. “It’s very nice to meet you, Jemma.”

  “Nice to meet you as well, David.” Jemma wondered what had happened to Kyle. He left the house before her and Krista, mumbling something about needing to check the horses.

  Tesla found her next. “Jemma, I’m so glad you made it. Kyle had to check on the horses.” She took Jemma by the hand and led her away from the crowd. They were seated in the living room.

  “Now, tell me, how was the date?”

  Really? “It was fun. I’m afraid I had a few crying spells on him last night. It was the first time I’d been out without my daughter of any of my family for that matter.”

  Tesla nodded. “Of course. It’s understandable. I’m sure Kyle didn’t mind. It’ll get easier over time.”

  “You’re a very wise woman, Tesla.”

  “Thank you, dear. Now let’s go eat some of this great breakfast I’ve prepared.” They rose from the sofa and joined the other in the dining area. Jemma hadn’t seen so much food in ever. There had to be enough for thirty people.

  It was prepared buffet style. Tesla had prepared eggs, omelets, bacon, sausage, pancakes, toast, and hash browns. Jemma gained weight just inhaling the delicious aroma.

  “Just dig in,” Tesla said. “There are no calories in my food.”

  Jemma did as the older woman directed and scooped up scrambled eggs, bacon, toast and hash browns.” She sat next to Krista. “What happen to Kyle?”

  “Right here,” he said, walking into the dining room. “Had to check on the horses.” He quickly grabbed a plate and filled it to capacity. He sat next to Jemma. “Sorry, I wasn’t here with you,” he whispered.

  “Krista has been great. You have an amazing family.” She stuck her fork into the mound of eggs and tasted them. They tasted like heaven. They were light and fluffy. “Tesla, these are good.”

  Tesla sat across from them. “Thank you, dear. I love cooking for my family.”

  ***

  The ride back to Jemma’s house was quiet. Kyle wondered if his family had been too much too fast. It was only their first date, and now she’d already met his entire family. Talk about red flags. He’d been worried for nothing. Everyone liked Jemma on sight.

  She sat in the passenger seat, holding her blouse from the night before. She looked sexy as hell in his white button-down shirt. It was one of his fat shirts. He kept as a reminder not to go back to that old life.

  “I had a wonderful time last night and this morning,” Jemma said quietly.

  This was his chance. He had to take it. “Maybe we can do it again.”

  “Kassie and I normally do movie night on Sundays. Why don’t you come watch movies with us?”

  He darted a glance in her direction. “You want me to come to your house tonight?”

  She giggled. “I know. Right? Like we haven’t been together enough already. But I was thinking, might as well see how Kassie takes to you with me.”

  He could see the sense in her request. No use dating, and then Kassie hates the fact that her mother is dating. “What time?”

  “How about six. I’ll fix dinner. We start watching movies after that. Be prepared for children movies.”

  He laughed. If she only knew what he went through when his nieces and nephew hit the ranch, he thought. Once those kids got there, his house became theirs. He had video games and a supply of the latest children’s movies. “I’m used to children movies.”

  “Remember that when you come over tonight,” she said.

  He turned on her street. The Tahoe and the Explorer were gone. “Where’s everybody?”

  “Oh, they must be still at breakfast.”

  He knew that was a milestone moment for Kassie and she was missing it. He unclipped his phone from his waist. “Why don’t you call them?” He handed her the phone. “We could meet them if you like.” He had every intention of going home and take a nap.

  She took the phone, but didn’t use it.

  “Jemma, aren’t you going to call?”

  “If I call, my mother will think that I think that she can’t take care of the kids. I mean, I’d like to hear my baby girl’s voice this morning.”

  “Then call. Surely, your mother will understand.”

  She hesitated. Then she finally dialed the phone. “Hi Mom. I know she’s fine. Really? Okay.” She ended the call and sat the phone on the console. “Thank you. They’ll be home in about thirty minutes.”

  Kyle parked in front of her house. He exited the car and helped her out of the BMW. They walked in silence to the front door. That was when he realized that Jemma didn’t have her house key. “I forgot you don’t have your keys.”

  “No worries. It’s one of those new high-techy locks. Voice print.” She stepped closer to the front door and cleared her throat. “Jemma Patterson.”

  Kyle watched in awe as the door clicked and she opened the door. “See?” She invited him inside and they sat on her couch. “I had a really nice time. I’m sorry about falling asleep on you, but it was the best sleep I’ve had in years.”

  “Then there’s no need to apologize. I hope my family wasn’t too much for you.” He knew he needed to get out of the house before her family returned. He didn’t want Kassie to see him bringing her mother home on a Sunday morning.

  She shook her head. “No, everyone was wonderful. Thank you for a wonderful evening.” She rose from the couch. “I hate to rush you off, but I need to change before everyone gets back.”

  He rose as well. “I understand. We’re still on for tonight?”

  She peered at him with those green eyes. “Of course.”

  Kyle’s heart raced with the possibilities. “Great.” He kissed her quickly on the lips. “I’d better get out of here or I won’t be able to guarantee my good behavior.” He kissed her again, slower this time, wanting to savor the moment.

  Jemma moaned, moved closer to him and wrapped her arms around him. The kiss deepened, until breathing became a priority. “Yes, you better get out of here before we both get into trouble.”

  “Mommy!” Kassie called out as she entered the house with the rest of the family. Jemma had changed clothes and was now sitting on the couch, making out her grocery list. She was only out for one night and it seems her family devoured most of the food in the house.

  She rose and went to meet her daughter. “Hi, baby!” She hugged and kissed her daughter. It was their first night apart since Jared’s death. Kassie looked like she passed the test with flying colors. Maybe they were both moving forward. “Did you have fun last night?”

  Kassie nodded. “Watch movies. Just like you and Mr. Kyle.” She glanced around the room. “Where’s Mr. Kyle? He didn’t say good-bye.”

  Rats. She didn’t think about that. “Honey, he had to leave, but he’ll be back later. He’s going to join us for movie night. How does that sound?”

  Sh
e smiled again. “Good. I like Mr. Kyle.”

  Jemma wiped away tears. “I’m glad.” She kissed her daughter on her cheek. “I like him too.”

  Kassie nodded. “Can I go play?”

  “Sure, baby.” Kassie and her cousins headed upstairs.

  “How can three kids sound like fifty people going up the stairs?” Janna asked sitting beside Jemma.

  “Who knows?”

  “Okay, enough small talk. How was the date?”

  Jemma watched the parade of people leave the room. Her parents went to check on the kids, while Damon, went to the kitchen. “It went well. Dinner was lovely, then we went for a drive. We ended up at his place.”

  “How?”

  She really hated to rehash the drama, but it was needed. “I kept bringing up Jared. Then when I wasn’t talking about him, I was crying about him, Kyle said he understood. Did you know he used to be a psychologist?”

  Janna shook her head. “I knew he had been a doctor, but I just assumed it was a medical doctor or a vet. Janna used to say they all had doctorates. I thought that was amazing.”

  “It is. I met her this morning. I had breakfast with them.” Jemma waited for her sister to connect the dots.

  “Wait. You met Janna?”

  “And Justin and spouses and children. Tesla likes to do a big breakfast on Sundays,” she explained. “No one seemed shocked that Kyle had an overnight guest. I would have been asking a million questions.”

  “That’s because you’re suspicious. The Cosgroves are pretty laid back. So any hot action?”

  “No,” Jemma said, feeling a slow blush come over her skin. “We were making out, then we snuggled on the couch, and I fell asleep.”

  “Oh, Jemma! Not on the first date.”

  “Well, he fell asleep too.”

  Janna nodded. “Okay, good. I heard something about movie night. Good plan.”

  “Yes, I figured might as well find out now if Kassie minds us dating.”

  “Smart woman. Speaking of smart, Kassie is talking more and more. At first, Mom was crying every time she spoke.”

  The entire family had been walking an emotional tightrope over Kassie’s non-talking. Even after Janna assured everyone that Kassie was all well physically, and mentally, and that was her way of processing Jared’s death. “It’s hard not to break into a mess of sobs. It had been so long since she talked, but to hear to her laughing, and talking, sometimes I can’t hide my tears of happiness.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with expressing your joy, just try not to let her see you do it. Kassie might think she’s doing something wrong and revert to her non-talking stage and we don’t want that.”

  “No, I definitely don’t want to deal with that again.” She took a deep breath. “Her teacher wants to put her in advance placement classes, especially since she’s been speaking at school as well.”

  “Oh, that wonderful! If she’s speaking at school as well, it’s not just family and Kyle. It could be that she’s ready to turn a corner and start talking completely. She was a little chatterbox at the restaurant. We heard about Nutmeg and that she wants to start jumping.”

  Jemma couldn’t help it. Tears trickled down her face. “Yes, the ranch teaches a bunch of different ways to ride. She likes riding English, whatever that is,” Jemma said. “I’ll have to ask Kyle if she needs anything else.”

  “You know your daughter is getting quality lessons. Kyle is a top trainer. Krista says people come from all over the US for his skills.”

  Jemma hadn’t doubted that for one minute. “He carries a lot of power at the ranch. Where are the owners?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, Kyle is the ranch manager. His parents live on the ranch and take care of things. But I’ve never heard anything about the owners. Are they caretakers of the ranch?”

  “In a manner of speaking. What does Kyle say?”

  “I didn’t ask him, but it seems no one questions anything they do. I was just curious of how he had so much clout. Especially when he was living in Austin before he returned.”

  “Sounds like great questions to ask him at movie night.” Janna rose from the sofa.

  Jemma had more questions, but she knew they would get answered in time. She also knew her sister had more answers than she was willing to give. It was up to Jemma to prime that knowledge right out of her sister. “Speaking of movie night, I need to go to the grocery store. Why don’t you come with me?” She knew her sister couldn’t resist a shopping expedition of any kind.

  “Yeah, Dad and Damon went on a snack attack. You’d think they’d never seen food before. You’d better have plenty of food. Kyle looks like he has a big appetite.”

  Jemma smiled as memories from the night before. Kyle had her pinned on the couch and kissed her within an inch of her life. She loved every second of it.

  “Jemma?” Janna shook her sister. “You kind of zone out. You okay?”

  “Like you wouldn’t believe.”

  ELEVEN

  Kyle was stepping out of the shower when his doorbell rang.

  “Great. Now what?” He wrapped the towel around his waist and walked to the door. Everyone in his family knew he was going to Jemma’s tonight. Who else would dare knock on his door? He snatched the door opened ready to give whoever was on the other side the holy hell blues. But as he recognized the visitor, that was not an option.

  “Ava, what the hell?” He stared at his ex-wife. He hadn’t seen her in five years. She still looked beautiful as ever. “What are you doing here?”

  She finger combed her long, blonde hair. “Aren’t you going to invite me inside?”

  That was a can of worms he didn’t want to open. “Sorry, in a bit of a hurry. Why are you here?”

  “I’m actually on my way to Houston. I have a paper for you to sign. I thought you could sign it and I could be on my way.”

  “You know I don’t sign anything blindly. I’ll look at it later, and express mail it to you.” Nothing was going to stop him from making his date with Jemma.

  She sighed. “I can’t come in for a minute?”

  “No, sorry. Just give me the paper and you can be on your way.”

  “You look good, Kyle. Why couldn’t you have looked like this when we were married? I might not have strayed.”

  “Must have been the company I was keeping. The paper, Ava,” he said, trying to keep his voice calm.”

  “You know I could hang around tonight and you could just give me the paper.”

  “And where do you plan on staying?” Kyle glanced at the clock on the wall. He really needed to get rid of her.

  “You don’t have room for your ex?”

  “No.”

  She drew a dramatic breath, reached into a large bag and handed him the brown envelope. “I don’t know if I like all this attitude you’re giving me. I think it’s this place.”

  “Possibly. I’ll be in touch.” He closed the door and rushed to his bedroom. He opened the medicine cabinet and searched for the indigestion tablets. It had been five years and he still couldn’t stand the sight of the woman.

  He dressed in jeans, a button-down shirt, and casual shoes. He picked up the packages and he headed out of his garage. No sign of strange cars, he mused as he drove away.

  ***

  Ava sat in her car and waited. How dare he? That man had never denied her anything while they were married. Sure the sex sucked, but he was a noted psychologist in Austin. A woman had to make some sacrifices for society.

  Now since he’d returned to this Godawful place in the backwoods, her ex-husband had lost weight, and looked better than he had when he’d married her. She was losing her nerve, but it had to be done. Her cell phone rang.

  “What?”

  “Did you do it?”

  She sighed. “No, he wouldn’t let me inside the house. Looks like he was going out.”

  “I thought you had him wrapped around your fingers. We need that paper signed.”

  “Well,
I couldn’t get it done. He’s going to mail it back to me,” she said, knowing what that meant. “He was really anxious to leave.”

  “Are you serious? You just left the doc in his possession? Are you really this stupid? Once he actually reads it, you just sent me to jail and I’m not going alone.”

  “What do you want me to do?”

  “Go back and get it.”

  “Or what?”

  “Don’t bother coming back.” The line went dead.

  ***

  Earlier, he had stopped at the local toy store and purchased the latest children’s DVD for Kassie. He had to come bearing a gift, since he left before seeing her.

  As he continued the drive, his stomach started giving him the blues. This was what Ava did. She caused him stress. He hadn’t looked at the paper before he left, but he guessed it was an amendment of some sort. Probably why she wanted him to sign it immediately. Typical Ava. It was always about her.

  He shook away those awful thoughts. It would only accelerate his ulcer. An ulcer that hadn’t reared its ugly head in five years. He parked in front of Jemma’s large house.

  Why had she needed such a big place? It was just her and Kassie. Sure, she had family and she had said she worked from home. He wondered what she did for a living. Time to get some answers.

  He took a deep breath, hoping that would calm his stomach. Maybe if he rested few minutes to get his bearings. He reclined the driver’s seat and breathed in and out slowly. Why did that woman have to show up now? He had to focus on something else to take his mind off Ava and her antics. His eyes drifted closed as he thought of the ranch, the horses, and how happy his life was at this moment.

  His cell phone rang, waking him. Had he really fallen asleep? He wasn’t that tired. He reached for it and mumbled into the phone, “Kyle Cosgrove.”

  “Kyle, this is Jemma. Are you all right?”

  “Yes, I’m fine, why?”

  “My neighbor noticed your car was running and that you were in the car.”

  He sat up instantly. “Oh, I’m sorry. I’ll be right in. Tell your neighbor I’m alive.”