Becoming Jesse's Father (Dancing Moon Ranch Book 5)

  BECOMING JESSE'S FATHER

  BOOK 5: DANCING MOON RANCH SERIES

  Patricia Watters

  DANCING MOON RANCH SERIES

  Prequel: Justified Deception

  LIVING WITH LIES TRILOGY

  Book 1: Righteous Lies

  Book 2: Pandora's Box

  Book 3: False Pretenses

  THE LIES UNCOVERED TRILOGY

  Book 4: Uncertain Loyalties

  Book 5: Becoming Jesse's Father

  Book 6: Bittersweet Return

  CUTTING THE TIES TRILOGY

  Book 7: Cross Purposes

  Book 8: Dancing With Danger

  Book 9: Bucking the Odds

  BOUND BY LOVE TRILOGY

  Book 10: Forbidden Spirits

  Book 11: Imperfect Magic (late 2014)

  Book 12: Sheer Combustion (early 2015)

  Sequel: Finding Justice (mid 2015)

  Dancing Moon Ranch Family Album

  STORY DESCRIPTION: When Adam Hansen discovers his ex-fiancée, along with a son he never knew he had, hiding in an isolated cabin on his ranch, in the middle of winter, and learns she's being hunted down by her former husband, an ex-green beret, Adam vows to protect them, even though he has no intention of getting involved with Emily again. He's also trying to gain the love and trust of a three-year-old boy who fears and mistrusts men. But while he's safeguarding Emily and Jesse, Adam learns that Emily’s wanted in a non-custodial kidnapping to protect Jesse from a dangerous step-father, who's also Jesse's legal father, since Emily gave birth to Jesse while married to him. Still, Adam intends to protect them at all cost, even if it means going against his family, and the law, and taking Emily and Jesse into the mountains and beyond, if that's the only way to keep them safe.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or were used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental

  Copyright 2012 by Patricia Watters

  Created by Patricia Watters

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in whole or in part, or transmitted in any form or by any means by any electronic or mechanical or other means, not known of hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without permission of the copyright owner is illegal and punishable by law.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Watters, Patricia

  Title of Work: Becoming Jesse's Father / by Patricia Watters

  ISBN-10: 1479215368

  ISBN-13: 978-1479215362

  ASIN: B008NYQXYW

  REGISTRATION NUMBER: TX 7-591-849

  Effective Date of Registration: October 11, 2012

  Date of 1st Publication: July 23, 2012

  Date of Certification: August 14, 2012

  Domiciled in: United States of America

  Nation of 1st Publication: United States of America

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  BOOKS BY PATRICIA WATTERS

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  PROLOGUE

  Emily Lindstrom stared in horror at the kitten dangling from her husband's hand, and the big fingers closing around the kitten's neck, and said, "Please Erik, don't. It's Jesse's kitten."

  Erik's gaze shifted to the toddler clinging to Emily's leg, then he pinned her with a pair of piercing blue eyes, and said, "Then he'll learn early on what happens if he ever disobeys me. I'll ask you one more time. Where did you go?"

  Emily clasped her hands together to disguise their shaking. "Like I told you, I just wanted to take Jesse out in the stroller."

  "You're lying, sweetheart," Erik said. "You know you can't lie to me."

  Sociopaths have heightened senses, like a dog smells fear...

  She'd read it on the internet at the library not more than thirty minutes before. She hadn't expected to find Erik home when she returned though. Her alarm on seeing him was like a fist to the stomach, which Erik had never done. He was much more subtle. "I have no reason to lie," she said. "It's a nice day so I wanted to take Jesse out in the stroller."

  Erik's expression darkened and his fingers tightened around the kitten's neck. "One snap," he said. "So maybe we'd better have an understanding. From now on you don't go anywhere unless I'm with you. I love you and don't want anything to happen to you."

  Small expressions of love alternating with abuse create an addictive cycle in the victim...

  "Emily?" Erik snatched her out of her momentary distraction.

  Emily placed her hand on Jesse's face and pressed his head to her leg, more a reassurance for herself than for Jesse, and said, "I'm sorry, and I understand. I won't go out without you again."

  Erik smiled. Crouching in front of Jesse he handed him the kitten, and said, "Your mother's doing the right thing. You can have your kitten back."

  Jesse took the kitten, and looking up at Erik with a face frozen in fear, backed away from him and scurried down the hallway. Erik stood, crooked a finger beneath Emily's chin and kissed her, then moved his hands to curve around her shoulders, and said, "I'm glad I didn't have to kill the kitten but sometimes a lesson has to be learned the hard way, right, sweetheart?"

  Sociopaths give the appearance of being sincere yet are covertly hostile and domineering...

  "Emily! Am I right?" Erik’s hands tightened on her shoulders.

  "Yes, of course you're right," Emily said.

  Erik released her then and started for the front door, but when he placed his hand on the door knob, he glanced back and said, "Incidentally, if you ever try to leave me I'll have to kill you and Jesse to keep you safe from anyone who might harm you. Do you understand?"

  Emily could only nod because her voice was trapped in her throat.

  Erik smiled then. "Good, sweetheart. We won't need to have this discussion again."

  CHAPTER 1

  Dancing Moon Ranch - Sheridan, Oregon

  "Rick will be with you in a minute," Sophie Hansen called out to Adam, as she scurried after a crawling baby boy, whose fist was wrapped around the pole of a floor lamp that was about to come tumbling down. She scooped up the baby and cuddled him against her and kissed him on his chubby cheek then set him in the playpen with his two siblings. "Here, entertain your sisters." She headed down the hallway to rustle up Rick, leaving Adam Hansen standing in the mud room looking in at a scene he could only describe as chaotic domestic tranquility.

  A twist of bitterness curled in his gut as it usually did when he was at his cousin's house, more so today because it was December 15th, the anniversary, four years before, of the day he gave Emily the engagement ring. July 31st was the other date, because when it rolled around each year, while Rick and Sophie celebrated their anniversary he couldn't help feeling resentment that they'd stolen his wedding day by usurping the band, the cake, the flowers and all the other preparations that had been set in place for him and Emily.

  He knew it was illogical to resent Rick and Sophie for wanting to get married while all the family and friends who'd come for his and Emily's wedding were there, and it affected his relationship with Rick. Still, he couldn't lay it to
rest.

  Watching the triplets was also a reminder that he could have had one or two kids by now if Emily hadn't left him at the altar to run off with a guy who'd treated her like shit the whole time she was dating him. Back then, whenever he thought Emily was about to end things, and his time with her had come, she'd go back to Erik for more shit. But he never thought, after she accepted his engagement ring, that she'd do it again, let alone break the engagement two weeks before their wedding…

  Rick emerged from the hallway while tugging a sweatshirt over his head, and said, "What's the problem now? I thought we had everything battened down for the snow storm."

  "Dad wants you out in the barn," Adam replied. "Jeb was kicked by the mule and Dad thinks his leg might be busted."

  "That damn dog hasn't got the sense he was born with," Rick said, while shrugging into a fleece-lined parka. As Rick opened the back door, a blast of icy air laden with snow rushed in. "It's just not going to let up," he groused. "Looks like there's another foot of snow on the shed, and I just shoveled the thing off an hour ago."

  Adam thought about the hour-long ride ahead of him, and the return trip in the dark, but before the thought settled in, Sophie came up to Rick, kissed him soundly, and said, "Hurry back, honey. I'm putting the triplets down for a nap in a few minutes and the next two hours will be ours." The sultry tone of her voice and the little smile on her lips left no question as to what she had planned for them.

  Rick rubbed his knuckles across Sophie's cheek, and replied, "I'll make it worth your while."

  "You always do, sweetheart," Sophie said, giving Rick a wicked grin before turning away.

  As Adam and Rick stepped into the cold blustery weather, Adam felt another unwanted stab of envy. "While you'll be hunkered down in your love nest this afternoon, I'll be out there in the middle of it," he said, unable to disguise the edge to his tone.

  "I'll ride up to the cabin if you want," Rick volunteered, making Adam feel the sting of his own words since Rick was unaware how his idyllic life with Sophie and their kids affected him, and Adam hated feeling that way. It wasn't the way it should be, especially with two men who'd been like brothers when they were growing up.

  "I'm fine," Adam said, "just pissed with all this damn snow and no sign of it letting up. I'd spend the night in the cabin but Dad wants me back here in case we have trouble with trees falling on fences and livestock getting out. Even that sounds better than leading a mule packed with supplies up a mountain trail to a frigid cabin, and shoveling snow off the roof in the middle of a snow storm."

  "Yeah, I'm surprised your dad's sending you up there in this," Rick said.

  "I'm not," Adam replied. "He knows I can handle it, but he's pissed because I was supposed to have brought the supplies and survival gear up two weeks ago in case hunters or hikers got stranded, and I put it off. You know how my dad is when it comes to things like this." In fact, Adam's dad had given him holy hell, reminding him in no uncertain terms that he'd better shape up if he expected to take over management of the livestock end of the operation any time soon, which had been expected of him now that he had his degree in ranch management.

  "Then you'd better get going," Rick said, "and I'd better see what's going on with Jeb. Some dogs never learn. He got kicked in the head a few months back and still nips at Gus's rear, but he's so dumb he won't go back behind the barn where he was when Gus kicked him last time because he thinks that's where the problem is."

  Adam laughed some, because it eased his petty resentment toward Rick, but as they bent into the snow while making their way to the barn, he couldn't help imagining how it would be for Rick and Sophie over the next couple of hours, snuggled down in their king-size bed, or how it could have been with him and Emily on a frigid snowy day, if Emily hadn't kicked him in the balls and taken off with another man.

  Jack met them at the entrance to the barn, and said to Rick, "I moved Jeb to the end stall. The leg might not be busted but it's pretty banged up. Yell if you need me." As Rick headed down the corridor, Jack said to Adam, "Gus is packed and I saddled Max. You'd better leave now so you'll be able to unload the supplies and shovel off the roof before dark."

  "Adam!" Maddy's voice preceded her as she rushed into the barn, the hood of her jacket dusted in snow, her face flushed from the cold. Holding out several glow sticks, she said, "I saved these from Halloween. You can take them to light up the trail on the way back."

  "Keep your glow sticks, honey, Max can see fine in the dark," Adam said to his thirteen-year-old sister. "Even light from those can mess up Max's night vision."

  "What if he spooks from shadows?" Maddy said, her hand still extended with the glow sticks.

  "Max doesn't spook in the dark," Adam replied, while leading the mule out of the barn. "Besides, nothing builds trust with your horse like riding when you can't see your hand in front of your face." As he stepped outside, he felt the icy sting of snow against his face. It was going to be one hell of a trek up the mountain, and even worse returning in the dark when the snow would be coming down harder, as predicted. Looking over at Maddy who stood in the entrance to the barn, the glow sticks clutched in her hand, a look of disappointment on her face, he said, "On second thought, those sticks might come in handy when I'm up at the cabin later. You want to bring them here."

  Grinning, Maddy rushed up and handed Adam the sticks. "Will you be back before I go to bed?" she asked.

  "Probably not," Adam replied. "I have a lot of work to do up there so don't wait up for me."

  Maddy reached up and gave him a hug, and said, "Don't forget to use the glow sticks," then ran toward the house.

  Jack led Adam's horse to where Adam was standing, and said, "How much wood did you cut when you were there last?"

  "A couple of cords," Adam replied. "The porch is stacked floor to ceiling so a person could heat the place for a month." He tossed the reins over his horse's head, then launched himself into the saddle, grabbed the mule's lead line and started towards the trail leading up the mountain, tipping his head to ward off snow that was coming at a sharp angle, with no sign of letting up.

  As he crossed the clearing, the wind whipped around and the surroundings became hazy, but he knew that once he got to where the riding trail cut through the woods, he'd be protected by a canopy of trees, and the snow wouldn't be such a burden for the animals.

  It was well over an hour before the trail leveled off and opened onto a hilltop blanketed in deep snow, but the first thing he noticed on seeing the cabin was smoke curling up from the chimney. He saw no sign of horses, so whoever was in the cabin had come on foot. It had been years since anyone had been stranded there, but one incident several years back convinced his father to keep the cabin stocked with food, a stack of wood on the porch, and the door unlocked. It seemed his dad was right again.

  Tying Max and Gus to a hitching rail in front of the cabin, he pulled the snow shovel from Gus's pack and leaned it against the porch then bolted up the small bank of stairs to the porch, swept open the front door. And froze.

  For a few moments he stood staring in stunned silence at the woman who was staring steadily back at him, her wide-open eyes showing equal shock. But after he'd reeled in his astonishment, he said, to the woman he'd once been engaged to, "What in hell are you doing here, Em?"

  Emily Lindstrom, who looked like a deer trapped in headlights, said in a shaky voice, "I had nowhere to go."

  Adam took a moment to digest that, before replying, "What do you mean you had nowhere to go. Where's Erik?"

  "Please don't ask questions, Adam," Emily said. "I didn't intend to get you involved. This was the only place I could think to come where Erik wouldn't find me. He'd never expect me to come here."

  "That makes two of us," Adam said, undecided whether to pack Emily up and deliver her back to the man she'd dumped him for, or try to hold his cool and find out why she was there in the dead of winter, in the middle of a snow storm. He could also go through the litany of questions she'd left him with,
but seeing the pained look on her face, and the panic in her eyes, he shoved those thoughts aside, and said, "How long have you been here?"

  Emily gripped her folded arms, as if trying to shut out the world and him too, and said, "Two days."

  Adam also folded his arms, but for a very different reason. He was looking at a woman who had the power to turn his world upside down. She'd always had that power, even when she was dating a guy who treated her like crap, and she'd leave him and cry on good old Adam's shoulder for a week or so, and he'd about convince her to leave the bastard, and would be ready to pick up the pieces of Emily's life and make things right for her, when Erik would sweet talk her with promises and reel her in again. But he'd hardened himself to Emily now. He wouldn't fall into that trap again. But it didn't stop him from wanting her.

  "How did you get here?" he asked. "I didn't see a horse in the corral."

  "I hiked in," Emily replied.

  "Then you had to have come from the opposite direction because you didn't come by way of the ranch," Adam said, "and that's a five mile hike up here."

  "Erik insisted I be fit," Emily replied. "He made me jog with him four miles every morning, with fifteen pounds on my back. A five mile hike isn't much."

  "It is during a snow storm," Adam said, seeing the uncertainty in her eyes, knowing she was lying. Or at least not telling the whole truth. But Emily was good at that. Just before breaking off their engagement he'd asked if something was wrong because her responses to his lovemaking had changed, but she'd managed to convince him it was pre-wedding nerves then proved it by making love with a passion that didn't seem right at the time because it seemed forced. Which it was. A week later she returned the ring and left with Erik, who was home on leave from the Army.

  "So what's going on with Erik?" he asked, not really wanting to know the details because he'd been through this with Emily dozens of times before and was pretty turned off to listening to the same old discourse.

  "He's changed," Emily said. "It happened when he was in Special Forces. I suppose you knew he was a Green Beret."