sad for my brother at the same time?” Daisy asked. “He must be out of his mind right now knowing you’re going to take Annabel away.”
Take Annabel away. Sara’s stomach flipped over. She’d never really thought of coming to get her daughter as taking the baby away from someone. But now she kept seeing the look on Noah’s face as he’d taken Annabel out of the carrier and handed her over.
It was anguish.
Oh, Noah, she thought. This part of the story never would have occurred to me.
This whole time, from the moment the lawyer had read Willem’s awful letter, Sara had only focused on the fact that her daughter was alive, that Willem had taken her to Noah’s cabin. She’d never stopped to think about what had happened between then and now. Sara had just wanted to find her child and reunite.
But Noah had taken her in, had been raising her as his own, as he believed she was.
And that anguish on his face? Yes, he loved the baby.
Daisy poured two mugs of coffee and then opened Noah’s fridge. “Ooh, half a pecan pie. I think we’re gonna need a little of that too. Maybe a lot. Am I right?”
“Probably,” Sara said. “I’m not sure if I can eat a bite of anything, but since when don’t I stress eat?”
Daisy nodded sagely and grabbed the pie and the container of half-and-half, and Sara brought over the mugs to the table. By the time Sara sat down and took her third sip of the coffee and her second bite of pie, an idea had started forming in her mind.
An either really good idea or a really bad one. She truly wasn’t sure.
Noah barely heard what his ranch hand was saying about the hay bales, but the guy was smiling, so Noah smiled back and nodded. Two days before the grand opening was no time to have his mind elsewhere, but every cell in Noah’s body was focused on his cabin. And what was going on in there.
He knew, actually. Sara was reuniting with the daughter she’d never gotten to hold. Never gotten to meet, let alone know.
And soon she’d text him that she was ready for him to come back so they could talk, so he could fill her in on the last seven weeks.
So he could say goodbye to the baby girl he’d taken care of. His daughter who wasn’t.
The pain gripped his chest again, and he sucked in a breath.
“You okay, boss?” Dylan asked, adjusting his cowboy hat as he peered at Noah. “You don’t look so good.”
“A-okay,” Noah assured him. “So everything’s in order in the main barn. What about the petting zoo?”
Dylan nodded, his mop of blond bangs shifting. “We’re all set. I did inventory this morning. We won’t need to place orders till Tuesday. Layla’s feeding the farm animals now.”
Noah nodded. “Thanks,” he said. He’d hired several experienced hands for the land and animals and knew he could let go for a little while to deal with what was going on with Annabel.
He walked the quarter mile to his cabin and saddled up Bolt, riding her out to the gate a half mile down the gravel drive. He stopped and patted Bolt’s flanks, staring at the hunter green metal that stretched across the road, Dawson Family Guest Ranch in gold letters, the silhouettes of a cowboy and a cowgirl on horses on either side. His grandparents had made belt buckles with the logo to sell in the gift shop, and one Christmas, he’d had six personalized with the grandkids’ names. Noah still had his. In fact, he kept it on his desk, always had, and the past five months the buckle had served as a talisman, a lucky charm.
And for the past seven weeks, Annabel’s presence had spurred him on to go even farther with making sure every detail of the ranch’s reopening was perfect. This was going to be her future.
Now she wouldn’t be part of it. She wouldn’t be around at all.
His phone pinged with a text, and he reluctantly took it from his pocket. The sooner Sara was ready for him to return, the sooner she’d leave. With his baby.
But it was Daisy texting him.
U ok? Where R U? Heard whole story from S in the cabin.
At the gate, he texted back. No, not OK.
She texted back, Be right there.
A few minutes later, Daisy rode up on her bike. She jumped off, one hand on her belly, and threw her arms around him.
“Sara’s going to take her away,” Noah said, letting his sister comfort him for a second before pulling back. He stared out at the woods beyond the road. “Just like that.”
“I’m so sorry,” Daisy said. “You know I love that baby girl.”
“At least Annabel will be with her mother. And Sara will be with her daughter. I should focus on that. She got her daughter back. It’s a friggin’ miracle.”
Daisy nodded. “It is.”
“And I guess Annabel as a Perry and not a Dawson will have every creature comfort, certainly more than I could ever provide.” He knew the Dawson Family Guest Ranch would do well; he was already booked for the weekend and had bookings stretching all the way to fall. Not every cabin was filled for every day, but word of mouth would spread, and the ranch would be a big success. He believed it. But he’d never be able to give Annabel the life Sara could as richer-than-rich Willem Perry’s widow.
“You know what’s crazy, Daize?” he said. “My heart’s been broken before, so I know what that feels like. This feels like that.”
His sister put her hand on his arm. “Look, I don’t know what happened between you and Sara two years ago. But maybe you can stay in touch, visit Annabel.”
He could just see it now. “Uncle” Noah coming to visit every couple of months, bringing a stuffed animal. How could he become Uncle Noah when that baby had changed his entire life and world? She’d turned him into a father, something he wouldn’t have seen coming in a million years. And dammit, he’d been good at it. Another shocker.
His phone pinged with a text, and his heart sank.
Come talk?—Sara
He stood there, his head hung, unable to move.
“I’m so sorry, Noah,” his sister said again. “I know how much you love Annabel.”
Even he hadn’t known just how much he loved that ten-pound little human until this moment. More than he’d ever realized.
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