Close Range Christmas by Nicole Helm (ebook reader for laptop TXT) 📗

“We don’t know what he knows, Sarah. Which means we need to take all the precautions we can.” Dev tried to say what needed to be said gently, but his words came out harsh.

It shouldn’t be so hard to protect someone. Sarah always made it far more difficult than it had to be. This pregnancy was no exception, and because he was already tired of worrying over her on that score, he was not going to tiptoe around this.

“We don’t know what Anth is capable of. We don’t know what ways Ace warped him. In the moment, I thought him helping me was charity or a conscience. Now...”

“Now what?”

“I think it was just like Ace. To let me think I’d survived. To think I was free and clear, only to have a note show up that things aren’t over. I think it was a plan—whether between the two of them or Anth alone—so that when it would hurt even more, he could come after me.”

He kneeled in front of Sarah, because she had to get it through her thick skull that protecting her was the only thing that mattered. “Maybe he doesn’t know about you, Sarah, but it wouldn’t take much digging for him to figure it out. We won’t know when or if he does, and our baby is going to be here sooner rather than later. I know you’d do everything in your power to protect him, so let us do everything in our power to protect you.”

Sarah opened her mouth, but whatever she was going to say was lost in Duke’s booming voice.

In an instant Duke squared off with Dev and demanded, “You better explain that, because it sure as hell sounded like you just said our baby.”

Chapter Five

Sarah’s heart leaped into her throat. Dev had said our baby.

In front of Dad, yes, which was less than ideal. Less than less ideal, if she was being honest. But he’d... In the midst of all his awfulness he’d talked about protecting our baby. As if he held some ownership in this child. The way she’d desperately wanted him to.

She blinked at the silly tears and swallowed down the laugh that wanted to bubble over at the utter horror in Dev’s eyes as Duke waited furiously for an explanation. Clearly Dev had not meant to say our, but that made it all the more special—it meant he felt it, even if he didn’t want to admit it.

Though she was moved by the admission, hoped it was the starting point for Dev to see he had this little life to truly live for, she tried to smooth things over. “Dev just meant the royal our. You know. This baby is all of ours,” Sarah said, her voice squeaky. It was with emotion, but she was a little afraid Duke would read it as nerves.

“Bull,” Duke spat. “Explain this, Wyatt.”

Sarah winced. Dad using a last name was never good. Dev slowly stood from his kneeling position at her chair. His expression was hard and that blank look that had her heart pinching in her chest.

She was desperate to get rid of that default reaction in him. She tried to scoot off the chair, but it was an ungainly struggle and she gave up on a huff as Dev and Duke stared at each other in a silent standoff. “Don’t we have more important things to—”

“Are you the father?” Duke demanded, wholly unconcerned with her at the moment.

Which had her temper bubbling up over the giddy hope she’d been feeling. She managed to get to her feet this time and stepped in between Dev’s motionless, emotionless form and Duke’s furious one.

“Dad! I got pregnant because I wanted to have a baby.”

Duke’s gaze finally left Dev’s and met hers. “With him?”

She met his fury with her own. “I wanted a baby, and I didn’t want a baby daddy. So Dev did me a favor and supplied the...necessary components.”

She heard Dev groan behind her and Duke winced a little bit at that himself. Well, good, if she could make both men uncomfortable, maybe they’d stop being angry or defensive or whatever.

“It was my choice and I begged him to do it. Trust me, he didn’t want to. He did me a favor.”

“I...can’t pretend to understand any of this,” Duke said, shaking his head.

“You don’t need to. Anth Wyatt is threatening six of us.” The mention of the real reason they were here sobered both men. “I’ll move into Pauline’s as long as you do too, Dad. I think it’s good for as many of us as possible to be under the same roof. That way we can always pair up to do the chores. Someone can always be with me. It makes sense. You staying here alone does not make sense.”

“You’re changing the subject,” Duke said, crossing his arms over his chest.

“For the time being. Because protecting ourselves is a little more important than you acting like you have a say in the matter—” she pointed at her large stomach “—when we’re already here.”

Duke’s gaze moved back to Dev behind her. Narrowed and angry. Sarah didn’t have to look at Dev to know what the expression on his face would be. Blank. Maybe with the ghost of self-loathing.

“I’d say both are pretty important,” Duke said at length.

“I’d say it’s not between you and Dev to work out. It’s between you and me,” Sarah argued. “And I’m not speaking another word about it until we’re all together at Grandma Pauline’s.” With that, she turned on a heel and marched—or, more accurately, waddled—out of the room.

She had to use the banister for support to help get her up the stairs. She didn’t feel any contractions but she felt heavy as she huffed and puffed up to her room.

“I’m mostly ready to get you out of there, little man, but you’re probably safer inside and, oh yeah, I’m terrified of pushing you out of me.” She rubbed her stomach, comforted by the little conversation with