Czytaj książkę: «The Lawman's Surprise Family»

Chapter One

The chances of avoiding Benjamin Blake in a town this size weren’t in her favor, but it didn’t stop Sofia McCray from hoping. If she could just get through today, she might be able to escape him until she was ready.

As she knocked on the police chief’s office door, Sofia could make out the muffled voices of two men inside. After a moment, the door swung open to reveal a man with blond hair that was gray around the temples, an easy smile and a wedding ring. The Chief of Police badge shone on his blue uniform. He shook her hand and gestured her in.

“Good morning,” Chief Taylor said. “Miss McCray, I presume?”

“Yes, from the Haggerston Chronicle,” Sofia replied with a quick smile, mentally preparing herself for her assignment. She’d only started at the Chronicle a couple of weeks ago after returning to Haggerston, and this assignment meant that her editor was taking her seriously—for now. She wanted to keep it that way.

“Let me introduce you to the officer you’ll be riding along with.” He gestured to the chair in front of the large desk.

A tall officer, dark and rugged, sat with his arms crossed over his broad chest. His dark hair was cropped short, his blue uniform setting off his obsidian eyes. He cocked his head to one side as her gaze lit on him, and a small smile turned up one corner of his mouth. Her heart thumped hard and then seemed to stop in her chest. He needed no introduction—this was Benjamin Blake.

“You’re late,” Ben said, glancing at his watch. “Eight oh five.”

She’d heard that he’d become a cop, but she’d had a hard time imagining her high school “bad boy” boyfriend in law enforcement. Looking at him in full uniform, his dark eyes fixed on her almost teasingly, she found herself tongue-tied.

She had some explaining to do, and she wasn’t looking forward to it.

“Officer Blake says that he knows you already,” Chief Taylor said. “So that should make working together for the next two weeks easier. We appreciate you being here, Miss McCray. Our new community watch program could use the publicity.”

She finally found her voice. “Yes, absolutely.”

“I just need you to sign a few papers.” Chief Taylor passed her a clipboard with forms attached. Sofia took it numbly.

“Couple of days, I thought,” Ben said to the police chief, and she glanced up from the papers.

“Or so...” the chief replied noncommittally. She didn’t miss the tension that rippled along Ben’s jawline and realized he wasn’t looking forward to this, either.

She scratched her signature across the bottom line, and when the police chief flipped to the next page, she did the same once more. Sofia attempted to keep her expression neutral, her eyes moving over the forms without absorbing any of the information.

“In case you get shot,” Ben offered helpfully, nodding at the forms. Humor flickered at the corners of his lips, and for a split second, she saw the teenager in him again. His gaze held hers for longer than necessary, and her breath caught in her throat. She forced her eyes back down to the page, heat rising in her cheeks.

“Just accepting that a ride-along has risks,” the chief said cheerfully. “And that you won’t sue us if anything should happen.” He took the clipboard from her and turned away. “Officer Blake is one of the leading officers in this program. We’re focusing on domestic violence, child endangerment and driving under the influence. We have bigger problems here in Haggerston than most people realize.”

“Yes, I was briefed on that,” she said. “I’m glad to be a part of getting the word out.”

“Do you have any questions before you leave?” Chief Taylor asked.

“Not at the moment,” she admitted. She was still too distracted by Ben’s unexpected presence to think of much else.

“Well, I’m sure Officer Blake can fill you in when questions arise,” he said with a smile as he turned away. “Have a good day, you two.”

Ben pushed himself up from the chair where he’d been reclining and gestured for her to leave the office ahead of him. The door closed behind them, the din of the bull pen enveloping her. Sofia looked up at Ben, noting the subtle way his face had changed over the years. He had lines around his eyes now. His jaw was clean shaven—a change from the constant five o’clock shadow he used to sport. He still had those piercing dark eyes with long lashes, but he’d lost that familiar scent of leather jacket and cheap cologne. He was a man now, his teen years left solidly behind him. He seemed to sense her scrutiny, because he glanced down at her.

“It’s been a long time,” he said, his tone low enough for her ears alone as they made their way around the desks and toward the front door.

“Yes. Nine years.” Nine years was a long time to carry a secret. She’d come back to Haggerston knowing that she’d have to reveal it sooner or later, but it wasn’t going to be easy.

“Something like that.” He nodded at another officer, and she felt the warmth of his hand touch the small of her back as he guided her past some desks. “How long have you been back in town?”

“Two weeks.” They emerged past the front desk and pushed open the front door, stepping out into the cool spring air.

“So, what brought you back after all this time?” Ben asked.

She wished she had a flippant reply for that question, but she didn’t. She felt her smile fade.

“My dad has cancer,” she said, her voice low. “I’m here to help him through his treatment.”

That was an understatement. She was also here to try and rebuild a relationship with her father after all these years. When her parents split up that summer that she graduated, she’d done what all the counselors advised against—she’d chosen sides. Now that her father was facing cancer, she knew that she had a lot to make up for to him, as well. He’d met his grandson for the first time two weeks ago, and she truly wished she hadn’t left it so long. This homecoming wasn’t a victorious one by any stretch.

“I’m sorry, I had no idea.” He reached toward her, but just before touching her arm, he pulled back.

“It’s okay. We aren’t really advertising it. Dad doesn’t want anyone to treat him like he’s sick.” She touched the tingling place on her arm where he’d nearly touched her.

Ben nodded slowly. “I get that.”

This was not going to be easy working with Ben. She’d thought she’d put all those butterflies behind her. She was a grown woman with responsibilities, for crying out loud, and she was smarter this time. Wiser. Older. Why couldn’t that be enough? She stopped and turned around to face him. “Are you sure this is a good idea?”

“What, us working together?” he asked.

“Exactly. We have a bit of a history—”

“I tried getting out of it,” he interrupted. “It was no use.”

“Oh.” He’d tried getting out of it? Somehow, she thought she’d be the one with more reservations, but perhaps she was wrong about that. Benji had been her first love—the bad boy with the motorcycle who swept her off her feet, much to her parents’ chagrin. And she’d loved him passionately until he dumped her and she left town with her mother—pregnant. She’d never told him about her pregnancy or her plans to leave, and while the guilt of that laid heavily on her shoulders, she’d honestly thought she was doing him a favor.

“I know this is complicated...” she began.

“Yeah, a bit.”

He angled his steps toward the parking lot, and she had to quicken her pace to keep up. Was he actually annoyed with her? It hardly seemed as though he had any right. She’d been the one unceremoniously dumped on the night of her prom. They’d been just about to go inside when she’d asked him the question that had been plaguing her for weeks: How would they stay together when she went off to college? It was a reasonable question, considering that Benji hadn’t finished all the classes he needed to graduate that year, so he’d be staying behind. Somehow, that had turned into an argument that ended with Benji telling her that they’d never last anyway, and he’d driven off on his motorcycle, leaving her in the parking lot with a corsage and a broken heart.

“It looks like things have turned out well for you,” she said, giving him an uncertain smile. “You look good.”

It seemed like the polite thing to say, although what the social etiquette was in a situation like this, she had no idea.

“So do you,” he said, ambling toward the row of squad cars. “Mind if I ask you something, now that I’ve got the chance?”

“Not at all.” Again, that seemed to be the polite response, even though she wasn’t exactly keen to face his questions.

“So how come you just disappeared like that?” He glanced down at her, his gaze fixed on hers for a moment longer than necessary, then he nodded toward a cruiser. “This one is mine, by the way.”

Little did he know that the least of her sins was the disappearing act, but if she had to be honest, she’d disappeared because she was afraid to face reality. And he had no idea how much reality had been hanging in that balance.

“It was a complicated time,” she said hesitantly. “My parents had just told me that they were getting a divorce. They’d been fighting constantly for months. Then, when my mom said she was moving out, I—”

Her world had crumbled. She’d felt adrift—seventeen, alone, pregnant and without the stability of her parents’ marriage to buoy her up. She could still remember how she’d begged them to reconsider, to go for therapy, to do anything to keep them together. They hadn’t, obviously, and their breakup had decimated her.

“So, what happened, exactly?” Ben asked. “There were rumors about your parents and why your mom left.”

“What kinds of rumors?” she asked, irritation rising. Her father had stayed in Haggerston, and the town should have known what kind of husband and father he’d been—not exemplary.

Ben unlocked her door and she got in. A moment later, he got into the driver’s side and, without looking at her, said, “People said she met someone else.”

“She wasn’t cheating on my father,” Sofia said dryly. “She’d just had enough. Sometimes women reach their limit.”

“But you both left without saying goodbye to anyone,” he said, finally looking in her direction. “I found out when I came by your place, and your dad told me you were gone. You never did answer my emails.”

“We were broken up, if you recall,” she said defensively. “I didn’t just leave town without telling my boyfriend. I left without telling my ex-boyfriend. I was no longer your business.”

“Technically,” he replied evenly.

“What does that even mean?” she demanded. “We were seventeen. We were kids. Do you honestly think I owed you something after you broke my heart?”

She felt the hypocrisy of the words as they passed her lips. She’d left pregnant with his son—of course she owed him something! But he didn’t know that, and his argument right now was surrounding the fact that she’d left at all without telling him her plans. And while she knew that she had to tell Ben about his son—and her son about his father—she’d wanted to wait until the time was right, until she had full control of the situation. Now that she was working with Ben, she’d have to tell him sooner than she’d planned, and her stomach sank at the thought.

“Yeah, I think you did owe me something,” he said, and the heaviness in his tone made her wonder if perhaps he did know more than he was letting on. “We weren’t just a couple, we were—”

She waited, but he didn’t finish the sentence.

“We were each other’s first loves,” she concluded. “Even if that relationship was over—”

“I still loved you. That hadn’t ended for me.”

Sofia froze, his words tickling something deep inside of her. He met her gaze, held it, then put the key into the ignition and the cruiser rumbled to life. So if he’d still loved her, why dump her? Why leave her alone in the parking lot of the community center in a tulle gown? That didn’t sound like love to her; though something in his voice suggested that he still felt something for her, and she couldn’t help the heat that rose in her cheeks.

“Anyway,” he said, breaking the silence. “Like I said, it’s been a long time.”

Her cell phone rang, and Sofia glanced down to see her father’s number. It was a welcome interruption right then, and she picked it up before it could ring twice.

“Hi, Dad,” she said, trying to keep her voice casual.

“Hi, kiddo,” he said, using the same endearment he’d used as long as she could remember. “We, uh, have a situation over here.”

“What kind of situation?” she asked.

“Jack is sick.”

“Sick? How sick? Does he have a fever?”

“I don’t know. He’s throwing up, though, and it’s not stopping.”

She sighed. “Did you give him the gluten-free cereal for breakfast?”

“Of course.”

“With the almond milk, not the dairy?”

“Uh, yeah. I think.”

She closed her eyes. “What else did he have, Dad?”

“A cannoli.”

“A cannoli? You gave him a cannoli?” she demanded. “That’s full of everything he’s allergic to!”

“I thought he was like other kids. They’ve got the metabolism of rats.”

“Well, he’s not,” she replied, attempting to keep her anger in check. She’d explained all of this to her father in detail this morning. He’d said he understood. But this was like her father had always been, doing it his own way. What did he think, that she’d just been being dramatic when she explained all of this?

“What do I do?” He sounded contrite.

“I’m coming home,” she said, and without even saying goodbye, she punched the end button. Sofia glanced up to find Ben watching her, an odd expression on his face. When she looked over, he flicked his gaze back to the road ahead of him.

“You’re a mom?” he asked after a moment.

“I am. I have a son—Jack.”

“Everything okay over there?” he asked.

“Not really. Look, I know this is an inconvenience, but could we swing by my father’s house so I can check on my son? He has allergies, and my father—” She shook her head. “I just need to make sure he’s okay.”

“Sure.” He signaled a turn, and they headed back toward the main drag.

Sofia’s mind was on Jack right then, his poor little digestive system in knots because of his grandfather’s negligence. And because Jack didn’t seem to take his own allergies as seriously as he should, either, if she had to be completely fair.

She glanced at Ben. She’d have to tell him soon—she knew that. But not yet. She had this under control, and when Ben knew that he was a father, everything would change. Working together would be more tense than it already was, and she’d have no escape. She couldn’t afford to lose this precarious balance just yet.

“Thanks,” she said with a smile. “I appreciate it.”

* * *

She has a son. That little fact seemed to hit Ben in the gut like a sucker punch. He didn’t know why it hadn’t occurred to him before that she’d have children. In the time since high school, he’d gotten married and had a child, too.

He swallowed against the tightness in his throat.

He’d married Lisa four years ago. They’d met in a coffee shop when her car wouldn’t start. He’d given her a jump from his cruiser and gotten her number. Six months later, they were married. Lisa had always wanted a baby, and they’d tried for two years before she finally got pregnant. It was supposed to be free sailing after that, and neither of them had expected the complications. Before she’d even had her first baby shower, Lisa was admitted to the hospital for high blood pressure. The baby was born via emergency C-section at six months, and his wife had died on the operating table. His baby girl died two days later in the NICU. At barely two pounds, she was too tiny to make it.

And Sofia had a son.

Was this jealousy he felt? Mandy was frozen at the newborn stage in his mind, but from time to time he wondered what little Mandy would be doing if she’d lived. Right now, she’d be a year and a half. She’d probably be toddling around and calling him Dada.

His daughter had been the reason why he wanted to clean up this town. When he’d found out his wife was pregnant, he’d gotten this sudden protectiveness at the very idea of this little person. He wanted Haggerston to be the kind of place a kid could grow up safe and happy. His own upbringing had been neither. When he’d lost his daughter, his drive hadn’t changed. There were other kids growing up here—kids growing up just as poor as he had—and he wanted to make a difference for them, too.

“So how old is your son?” he asked.

“Eight.”

He glanced over at her, frowning slightly. “Eight?”

She nodded. “Yes. He’s in the third grade this year. And he’s a smart kid. He started reading really early. And he loves jokes—they drive me nuts...”

“Jokes, huh?” he said absently.

She’d said the boy was eight. She’d been gone nine years... The mental math wasn’t rocket science. Had she met someone right after him? That was a possibility. Sofia, with her almond skin and smooth, dark waves—she wouldn’t have trouble finding someone else. He’d never tried to deceive himself in that area. He hadn’t seen her in nine years, had a rocky history with her and had good reason not to trust her again, and he still found himself feeling things he didn’t want to feel when looking at her. Imagine some poor guy who didn’t have his defenses up—he’d never have a chance.

“Kid jokes.” She shrugged. “He’s a regular little comedian. Like, what do you call a flying police officer?”

Ben looked over at her mutely.

“A heli-copper,” she concluded, giving him a wan smile.

Ben cracked a grin and shook his head. “Okay. Cute.”

They were coming up on her father’s street. It felt weird to be driving her back there, almost like the old days when he could feel her arms tightening around his middle as he took the turn around the corner. He could still remember the creak of his leather jacket as she held on tight, and the sound of her voice coming from behind, mingling with the growl of his motorcycle’s engine.

Except they weren’t seventeen now, and she was a mom. That changed a lot of things in his head, somehow. Time had passed, and there was no pretending otherwise.

“Thank you for this,” she said as he slowed to a stop in front of the familiar old house. Her cell phone rang again, and she picked up the call as she got out. “Dad? Look, I’m here. Is he still throwing up?”

Ben got out, too. She hadn’t exactly said that she wanted privacy for this, and he found himself more than a little curious about her son. What was she like as a mother? So far, he could see the matter-of-fact side of her coming out, all concerned with vomiting and allergies. He’d probably be the same way if things had turned out differently. Lisa would have been the same way, too, although she’d never had the chance to even see her daughter—

He pushed the unbidden thoughts back and picked up his pace. He caught up with her at the side door and stepped inside after her. It had been a while since he’d been in Steve McCray’s house. When Steve’s wife had left him, he’d been a wreck and spent way too much time in bars. Ben had personally escorted Mr. McCray home again several times, and he’d always been struck by how different the old house looked with the women gone. It had gone from a somewhat cluttered but homey little place to a dank and dismal hole seemingly overnight.

The side door led into the kitchen, and when he glanced around he could already see Sofia’s touch around the place. A vase of daisies—Sofia’s favorite flowers—sat on the counter next to a stack of library books that looked to be a mixture of kids’ books and murder mysteries. She’d always liked a good who-done-it. The kitchen table had an assortment of boxed foods, all of which had “gluten-free” written in big letters on them in some prominent place. The box of cannolis sat open beside the gluten-free fare, like the forbidden tree in the garden.

“Hi, Sofia—” Steve McCray stopped when he saw Ben. He nodded in Ben’s direction.

Ben nodded his hello in return.

“Where is he?” Sofia asked, putting her hands on her hips and looking up at her father. Her eyes flashed dangerously, and Steve looked smart enough to take the warning.

“In the bathroom.”

Sofia marched out of the kitchen without a backward glance, and Ben met Steve’s gaze with a wan smile.

“So...” Steve said. “How’re things with you?”

“Not bad.” Ben shrugged. “Hanging in there.”

Steve regarded Ben in a tense silence, then gestured to the box on the table. “Cannoli?”

“Don’t mind if I do.”

Each man took a cannoli and bit into the sweet, creamy centers. They chewed silently, the sound of Sofia’s voice filtering through the walls while she talked with her son. She sounded gentle and sympathetic, although her words were too muffled to make out. A moment later, she came back into the room.

“He’s done vomiting now,” she said. “For the next couple of days he’ll be still feeling pretty sick, though.”

“Where is he?” Steve asked.

“Changing his shirt.” She sighed, then glared at them in exasperation. “Are you two eating cannolis?”

Ben licked his fingers and shot Steve a guilty look. He had a feeling the two of them were going to step wrong no matter what.

“Just getting them out of the way so Jack doesn’t need to even see them,” Steve replied, and Sofia looked as if it was taking effort to bite her tongue. Coming with her into the house had been an obvious mistake.

“So are you taking the day off, then?” Ben asked her, edging toward the door. “This looks like family business...”

Sofia regarded Ben for a moment, then turned to her father.

“Dad, are you okay to look after him while I’m at work?” she asked. “He won’t be much trouble feeling as badly as he does.”

“Sure. We’ll hang out,” Steve replied. “I’m sorry about that. If I’d known what would happen—”

“I told you about his allergies!” she retorted, then sucked in a breath. “Okay, apology accepted. Just follow my instructions for his food from now on.”

“Scout’s honor.” Steve shot her a grin, and before Sofia could react, a boy came padding into the kitchen.

“Mom?” He had a mop of dark hair and big brown eyes that looked an awful lot like his mother’s. He looked pretty tall for eight, but what did Ben know about these things? The boy paused when he saw Ben. “Hi,” he said shyly.

“Hi,” Ben said.

“Jack, this is one of my old friends, Ben,” she said. “I’ll be working with him for a little while.”

“Oh.” Jack’s lips were on the pale side. He obviously wasn’t feeling great. “Do I have to go to school today?”

“No, you can stay home,” she said. “I’ll call the school and tell them you’re sick.”

“Okay.” Jack paused again. “I’ve got a new joke.”

Sofia smiled and glanced toward Ben. “I told you he loves jokes, right? Okay, Jack. Let’s hear it.”

“What do you call cheese that isn’t yours?” Jack asked, his gaze flickering toward Ben momentarily.

“Pretty much all of it, with your allergies,” Sofia shot back.

“Nope. It’s nacho cheese.”

Ben laughed in spite of himself and shook his head. The kid was funny.

“So, can I watch TV?” Jack asked, turning his attention to his mother.

A smile twitched Sofia’s lips, and he caught the humor that passed between mother and son. Jack was obviously pushing for something here.

“Only because you’re sick and I feel sorry for Grandpa a little bit. As soon as you’re better, the regular TV deal stands.”

“Okay.” Jack smiled. He still looked rather pale.

“Come here.” She wrapped her arms around him and kissed the top of his head. “I love you, sweetie. I’m going back to work now. Call me if you need me, okay?”

Jack hugged her back. “Okay. Bye.” When she released him, he headed into the living room, and the TV turned on.

“Feeling a little tired, myself,” Steve said, glancing between Sofia and Ben. “I’ll see you later.”

Steve headed in the direction his grandson had gone, and on his way out, Ben noted that the older man looked thinner than he remembered. It was a small relief to be left alone with Sofia in the kitchen.

“You’re all strict about TV watching, huh?” Ben said with a small smile.

“Afraid so.” She caught his eye and shrugged. “I’m a far cry from the girl on the back of your motorbike, you know.”

“I know.” He pushed himself to his feet. “I’m a far cry from being the guy on the bike, too.”

“Let me call the school, then we can get going.” She sighed and shook her head. “Might as well get to work.”

A couple of minutes later, they were both in the car, and Ben’s mind was whirling. There was something about Jack...something he couldn’t quite put his finger on. He looked like a good kid, and he looked an awful lot like his mother, but the timing was still nagging at him. Was it rude to ask if there was a chance that he was Jack’s father? She would have told him if he’d gotten her pregnant, wouldn’t she?

“Should I even ask this?” he asked, glancing at her uncertainly.

“Probably not,” she joked.

“I’m being serious.” He put the car into gear and pulled away from the curb. “He’s eight. You left nine years ago. The timing is...” He trailed off, not finishing.

This was her cue to tell him that no, he was not Jack’s father. This was the place where she was supposed to tell him the story of the guy who came after him. This was the place where he would laugh it off and say something like, “Just making sure!” The silence stretched out, and he glanced toward her uncertainly.

“Sofia?”

She sighed. “I meant to tell you in a better way.”

Ben blinked, tightening his grip on the steering wheel. This wasn’t the reply he actually expected.

“You want to make that a little clearer?” he asked.

“I—” Sofia sucked in a breath. “I wanted to tell you in a different way, but, yes, you’re Jack’s dad.”

Silence fell between them, and the rumble of the motor seemed to grow louder by the second. Ben glanced at her a couple of times, then finally broke the silence.