The Paternity Pact (Texas Cattleman's Club: Rags to Riches 3)

“What about taking Daniel away from Grant?”

Grant might not be interested in a relationship with her, but Harley knew exactly how much he wanted his son. Guilt flooded her, but she refused to let it decide her actions. She couldn’t put her personal life on hold forever. And that’s exactly what would happen if she stuck around. Grant had asked to get to know his son, but he hadn’t given her any hope for the future. Nor had Harley asked.

“He knows our lives exist on two different continents. His practice is here. Zest is in Thailand.”

“I don’t envy your decision,” Beth said heavily. “I have no idea what I would do in your shoes.”

Harley’s chest tightened. She hated being in a no-win situation. “Whatever I do, someone is going to get hurt.”

“I know you’ve been

spending a lot of time together. Is there a chance things will work out between you? I mean, you share a son. Grant will always be in your life. Could you see yourself with him?”

“It’s confusing,” Harley admitted, giving voice to what had been bothering her these last few days. “He claims he’s not interested in any kind of permanent relationship.”

Beth hugged her tablet to her chest and frowned at Harley. “Have you asked him how he feels about you?”

“How does one go about asking the father of your child if he could ever love you?” Harley quizzed in dry tones, hiding her anxiety behind dark humor.

“Are you in love with Grant?”

“I don’t know,” Harley admitted, but that was far from the truth. Given the way he’d rejected her then and his determination to avoid any emotional attachment to her now, the notion filled her with alternating flashes of fear and longing. “To be honest, I’m terrified to go there.”

Yet, all she needed was the tiniest bit of encouragement from him, some sign that he wouldn’t reject her love and the cork would be out of the bottle. Even thinking about it now made her want to cry. She had years of pent-up longing and desire rumbling through her like an active volcano. And these last weeks with him, getting a taste of how amazing her life could be if he would just let her in...

“I’m in love with him,” Harley admitted. “But it’s hopeless.”

“Maybe not. You’ll never know unless you decide what you want with Grant is worth fighting for. And then go for it.”

Harley wished it were that easy. “Just because you got lucky in the romance department doesn’t mean everyone does.”

“But look at Miles,” Beth countered. “Did you ever imagine he’d fall as hard as he has for Chloe?”

“No.” Harley thought back to the family dinner and the way her brother had doted on his fiancée. Seeing that whole different side of Miles had given her pause. What she wouldn’t give for Grant to look at her that way. As if he’d given her his heart and soul.

“True love really does conquer all.” Beth’s radiant smile made her sister wince.

“If you say so.”

Harley’s heart became a stone lump in her chest. As much as she wished her feelings for Grant were only an echo of her long-ago crush, coupled with great sex and their connection through Daniel, she’d grown more and more convinced that she was truly in love with him.

“I do.” Beth’s eyes glowed with fervor. “In fact, I bet Grant already realizes that you are the woman he can’t bear to live without and he’s just waiting for the perfect moment to tell you.”

“Well, that would be something,” Harley remarked, wishing she had a speck of her sister’s optimism. “In the meantime, I’m just going to take it one day at a time.”

* * *

Two days after Grant met with the family law attorney about establishing his paternity claim to Daniel, he came home to an empty house. It was Franny’s day off and the plan had been for him to take Harley and Daniel out for dinner. Usually Harley picked their son up from day care and brought him over to swim in the late afternoon before he got home. Grant had grown accustomed to the vibrant energy and unrelenting noise of the four-year-old and the silence that greeted him had a weighty, oppressive feel to it.

Grant searched his cell phone, but found no message about a change of plans. If something had come up, surely she would’ve notified him. They were supposed to be celebrating. The night before, in the wake of his meeting with the lawyer, he’d repeated his offer to fully fund her nonprofit. This time when she demurred, he hadn’t taken no for an answer and had written a sizable check with the promise of more to follow.

Despite having grown up in one of the town’s wealthiest families, Harley had learned to live simply in Thailand and selflessly shared her time and energy, harnessing the power of Wingate Enterprises’ charitable contributions to help those who had little. The more time he’d spent with her, the more he accepted how much good Zest was doing. He no longer believed that his fertility practice was more important than Harley’s transformative crusade to lift women out of poverty by empowering them to help themselves.

Which was why he’d been so surprised that her thanks the previous night had such a hollow ring to it. He’d thought she’d be relieved that he’d agreed to provide the much-needed funds to keep it going. Yet, it seemed like no matter what he said or did, the state of things between them deteriorated with each passing day. The level to which this bothered him only fueled his uneasiness.

Exhaling harshly, Grant dialed Harley’s number and when she didn’t answer, followed up with a text.

Are we still on tonight? Shall I swing by and pick you up?