Savage (Wolf Ranch 4)

Shit.

Willow tucked her hair behind her ear and said, “It smells serious to me.” Her nostrils flared like she was actually smelling something.

“Smells?” I raised my eyebrows at the strange turn of phrase.

She got busy reaching for the bottle of wine, kept her eyes focused on the task. “I just mean, we haven’t seen Clint with any woman, ever. So, if he’s bringing you here to look at newborn foals, it means something.”

Warmth kindled in my chest. I shouldn’t be so happy to hear he never brought women around, but I was. He wasn’t a monk. I knew he’d been with women before me. A gorgeous cowboy like him, a virgin at thirty-four? As if.

“We had lunch with his parents. And brother. And Nash,” I added. All three of them stared as if I’d said I’d eaten with the Queen. “What?”

“And it’s not serious?” Willow asked. “Are you sure because while I haven’t known Clint all that long, no guy takes a woman to meet his parents unless it’s serious. Especially around here. You sure you don’t want some wine?” She held up the bottle of chardonnay.

“No, no. I’ll stick with water.” I pointed to the glass Marina had gotten me when I’d first arrived, a thin slice of lemon floating on the top.

All three eyed me with curiosity. I may or may not have been the one who usually led the party when it came to imbibing a few. What could I say? I’d always had a lot of steam to let off after getting out from Todd’s clutches. Audrey’s bachelorette party had been the perfect example. I’d organized it with Marina, and while a limo had been on the schedule, me having sex with Clint in the storage room had not.

“Okay, I’m pregnant, too!” I blurted because Audrey was also having a baby—just a few weeks ahead of me.

“Oh my God!” Audrey sang, throwing her arms wide and giving me a hug as she leaned across the couch. “Wait… is it Clint’s?”

I nodded, blushing. “Your bachelorette party. We kind of hooked up.”

“That was months ago!” Audrey said. I recognized her doctor's gaze as she looked me over. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me. I am an Ob/Gyn,” she muttered the last as if she was put out.

“I’m seeing Dr. Seymour. I didn’t come to you because there’s no way I could have my bestie staring at my lady parts with my feet up in stirrups.”

She rolled her eyes then nodded. “Yeah, that makes sense.”

“I didn’t tell anyone because, you know—my life is a mess right now,” I added. I looked to Marina and Willow and realized they knew nothing about my fiasco with Todd. I gave them the short version of how Todd had behaved in the marriage and my reason for leaving.

“Asshole,” Marina muttered, grabbing a stuffed mushroom and popping it in her mouth.

“That’s what I’ve been dealing with. Besides, twenty percent of first pregnancies end in miscarriage. I didn’t see the point in, well, facing it, until I was sure it would stick.”

“Clint didn’t know?” Marina asked, whispering. Her excitement was palpable—she practically bubbled over with enthusiasm, which made me feel much better about my deceit.

I shook my head. “Not at first. The first time I saw him since your party was the other day. I puked on his shoes at the grocery store.” I tossed out a rueful smile as they gasped. “I didn’t tell him then. The next night, actually. Well, I didn’t tell him. He figured it out.” I flushed, remembering our lovemaking that night. How he’d recognized the changes in my body. How he’d made me feel beautiful despite them.

They whooped and laughed, knowing what I meant.

“So you’re not taking the relationship seriously, but I’m guessing Clint is?” Audrey asked, eyeing me carefully.

Willow and Marina watched me, too, hanging for my answer. I got the feeling they knew something I didn’t. Something I should know—about Clint.

“I did meet his parents, but that’s not the reason for your question. What makes you ask?”

Marina jumped up and arranged some more cheese popovers onto a plate. Willow refilled Marina’s glass then went to a little mini-fridge in the corner for another bottle.

“Why do I feel like you guys know something I don’t?”

“Oh, we know these ranch boys, that’s all,” Audrey said quickly. “I’m pretty sure Clint’s just like the Wolf brothers—fiercely protective and completely loyal. You’ve seen them. I mean, you remember how Colton and Boyd crashed the bachelorette party. I guess Clint did too now that I think about it. Don’t worry, the guy’s not going to shirk his responsibility when it comes to a baby.”

Responsibility.

I didn’t like that word. It was one of the reasons I hadn’t told Clint in the first place. I didn’t want to get tangled in a relationship just because we were having a kid together. I wasn’t one of those people who believed having a kid out of wedlock was a sin, even though my parents did. I believed marrying the wrong person was a sin.