father. Not pawning him off on his mother’s relatives.”
The plan that had started taking shape yesterday during Jacob’s ride crystalized. He would be a better father than Oscar Burke and Brock Baron combined.
“I love Cody. You wouldn’t be pawning him off on me.”
“You’d be welcome to visit anytime. Your mother, too. Have him on weekends.”
Mariana shook her head. “You can’t possibly care for a toddler. You don’t even have a crib.”
“Small details that can be worked out.”
“Have you ever bathed a child or changed a diaper?”
Diapers? Okay, he hadn’t thought of that. “Larger details, but they can still be worked out. Other men manage to be fathers.” He was thinking of Luke. “I’m sure I can learn, too.”
“You work during the day. And you’re gone every weekend to some rodeo.”
“Cody’s in day care now. There must be a suitable place between my house and the drill site.”
She held up a hand as if to stop him. He almost expected her to say, “Your honor, I object.”
What she did say was, “This is much, much too quick. He just lost Leah. He can’t lose me, too. There has to be another solution.”
“There is. You can move in with me, too.”
“What!”
“Temporarily. Just until Cody adjusts. A month should be long enough, don’t you think? Longer if necessary. I can get off work early on Thursday.”
Her mouth worked, but no words came out.
Jacob couldn’t help grinning. Seems he’d finally done it. Shocked the unflappable Mariana Snow into silence.
* * *
“HAVE YOU LOST your mind?” Lucille Snow pressed her palms to her cheeks and squeezed her eyes shut. “You can’t do this.”
If Mariana had lost her mind, she wasn’t the only one. Jacob was plumb crazy to suggest she stay with him. Then again, she’d agreed. What did that say about her?
“Mom, please. Don’t make a big deal out of it.”
“I’m going to lose my grandson.”
“He’ll be two hours away.”
“What if he insists on full custody and won’t let me see Cody?” She bit out the word he as if Jacob were indeed the criminal he’d accused Mariana of calling him.
“He said you could visit as often as you wanted. Even have Cody for weekends. But if by some chance he refuses, we’ll go after him. Grandparents have rights, too.”
“You shouldn’t have told him he was Cody’s father.”
“But he is Cody’s father, and denying him his son would be wrong.”
Last evening surely hadn’t gone as planned. Mariana went from being the one in control to being a helpless bystander as Jacob made plans. If only she hadn’t been so impulsive. She should have insisted they hammer out visitation before she introduced him to Cody.
“Leah wouldn’t approve.” Her mother’s voice had started to shake. “I’d stop you if I could.”
This...vehemence was new.
Mariana went over and put an arm around her mother’s shoulders. “Working yourself up into a frenzy won’t help.”
“Cody’s so little. He’s already been uprooted once these past months.” Her mother started to cry.
“Drive up again this weekend. Or maybe I’ll drive down. That way, Cody can see Grandma, too. She loves seeing him.”
Mariana’s grandmother was also in Austin. Though still living alone, she’d grown frailer this past year, ever since her hip replacement, and required more time and attention from her daughter.
“Watch him carefully.” Mariana’s mother brought her tears under control.
Him meaning Jacob. “I will, Mom. But he’s not a brute. He was really pretty good with Cody the other day.”
“He doesn’t know the first thing about toddlers.”
“Which is why I agreed to stay with him. Temporarily.” And she wasn’t leaving until he’d convinced her beyond a shadow of a doubt he was capable of parenting a small child for extended periods of time. It required more than a great dog, a nice yard and impressive cooking skills. “Leah trusted me to do what’s best for Cody, and I think this is best.”
She continued packing her suitcase, taking a mental inventory. Underwear. Toiletries. Four pairs of shoes. Workout clothes. Sleepwear.
Sleepwear? What should she bring? Mariana had never cohabitated with a man in a platonic relationship. She’d never cohabitated with a man period. Not that she was a prude. She’d spent nights at her boyfriend’s place before. When she’d had a boyfriend. Sleepwear wasn’t an issue then.
She settled on her two least-sexy pajamas and threw in a thick robe for good measure. Cody sometimes woke up during the night. She’d be appropriately covered should they find themselves wandering the house.
Helena, Mariana’s secretary, had proved invaluable. She’d ordered a portable crib, a portable changing table, plastic crates to substitute for dresser drawers and all manner of small necessities. Then, she’d had the items delivered to Jacob’s house. She’d also located a childproofing service. They were scheduled for later in the week.
Mariana saw no need to move Cody’s furniture and belongings just yet. Best to wait and see how things progressed. Jacob might reconsider. His insistence on this arrangement was a knee-jerk reaction to her insistence that they wait.
And she’d only insisted because her mother had come unglued. Mariana’s staying with Jacob seemed like a good compromise.
What had gone wrong the other day? she wondered. Mariana was usually good at coaxing people into doing what she wanted. It served her well in her profession. Yet she’d failed to coax Jacob into moving slowly. Was she blinded by his looks and appeal? She didn’t want to label it attraction. She couldn’t possibly be attracted to him. He wasn’t at all the kind of guy she went for. Besides, he’d fathered her sister’s child.
“Where’s Cody?” Her mother peered down the hall, her expression anxious.
“In his room. Packing a suitcase.”
“You’re not leaving that up to him!” Her mother started for the door.
“Mom, come back. He’s just playing.”
To keep Cody occupied while she packed, Mariana had put a second suitcase on the floor of his room. That was all it took. Cody had spent the past twenty minutes filling the suitcase with mostly toys and picture
