Secret Baby at Camp (Camp Hardwood 4)

I’m still shocked at seeing Hawk. I wanted to smack him and kiss him all at once. He’s here two seconds and bossing me around. Again, I fight my body's reaction to him. I don’t know what it is about his bossy tone but it always does things to me. I love it almost as much as when I catch that rare sweetness deep inside of him. It’s probably just a fantasy I’ve made up in my mind over the years to feed the dream of being his.

“He’s the father,” Mrs. C finally says, and it’s not a question.

I saw Hawk get jealous over me a time or two, but there weren't very many opportunities for that to happen over the years. He and my father kept men away from me. How many times did I wonder if he was with other women? I never saw it, but how can a man who looks like Hawk have gone without? I swallow the lump forming in my throat when I imagine the women he’s been with since he left me.

“Where is he?” I worry my bottom lip between my teeth. If I know anything, it’s that Hawk will get what he wants and he can get himself out of almost any mess.

“Moose put him in holding.”

I bring my hands up to my face to rub my eyes, unsure how I feel about that. It’s not so much because of Hawk being locked up but a part of me is hoping that he hasn't told my father where I am yet. If he’s in a jail cell, my father will find out soon enough.

“They’re only holding him, Piper. It’s not legal for us to keep him in there, but I don’t think he’s a law-abiding citizen himself.”

I snort a laugh because I don’t know what Hawk is. He was always good to me and went out of his way to make sure I was taken care of. It was more than my father ever did and I always wondered if it was because my father told him to.

“I came here to start new.” I drop my hands from my face to wring them in my lap as I look down at my small baby bump.

I saw something in Hawk’s eyes when he saw my belly and a small spark of hope lit inside of me. He had to know my father would be far from okay with me being pregnant. Not only am I knocked up but it’s by one of his men. He’d see it as a sign of disrespect and then it would be an all-out war. Hawk has to know that, too.

I know Hawk could take my father one on one, but my father never plays fair. To be honest, though, I don’t think Hawk would either when it comes to something he wants. I guess when I think about it, I wouldn't either. You do what you have to. I know I will when it comes to the baby already growing inside of me. I love my little man already. I’m sure he’s a boy—he has to be. At the rate he’s growing, he’s going to be as big as his daddy.

“No one is making you leave,” Mrs. C says. She comes over and sits down next to me. She takes one of my hands and laces her fingers in mine. “I think some things need to be worked out, but what everyone needs right now is to calm down.”

I don’t want to calm down, I want to see Hawk. As fast as I’d run from him before, my mind is spinning with a million things I want to ask him. What’s happening back home and do I need to run? I know the only thing that will calm me is seeing him and it would be helpful if he was locked up. I could keep my distance from him as I ask the questions I want answers to. I know this window of time is small because there’s no way Hawk will stay in that cell, whether it’s my father getting him out of it or Hawk finding a way out.

“I think you’re right. I should get some rest and regroup in the morning.” I make it extra dramatic by putting my other hand over my belly, rubbing my bump and pretending to yawn.

“I just want a nice long bath and some sleep.” It’s not a lie. I’m pregnant and I always want those things, but I want them after I go see Hawk.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to stay?” Tia pushes.

“I think you two should go cool down your men. That was a throwdown they all had and I’m sure they’re pacing outside waiting for you both.”

Mrs. C squeezes my hand before giving me a quick kiss on the cheek. “You call if you change your mind and we’ll be right here. Get the rest you and the baby both need. Trust me, I’ll get this all worked out for you, sweetheart.”