and that wrestling match with Houston hadn’t helped matters.
“Lucas is my son,” she said, under her breath. Only hers. And it would stay that way.
She turned and started to walk toward the back doors, but Houston latched on to her arm and spun her around.
“I will see him,” he insisted.
Gabrielle decided to placate him—or rather, lie. “All right. You can see him tomorrow morning. I’ll call you with the address.”
He didn’t exactly roll his eyes, but it was close. However, the man’s voice cut off another stinging remark he was obviously about to make.
“Houston?” the man called out, and the front stable doors flew open.
Gabrielle darted to the side, next to the stall, but instead of going in it where she’d be trapped, she ducked around the front and then behind the tack shelves again.
“Dad,” Houston answered. “What do you want?”
Mack Sadler was an older, genetic copy of Houston. Houston didn’t look at his father, but he angled his body so he could keep an eye on Gabrielle.
“I made the sheriff tell me what he told you,” Mack announced. “Is it true? Did that Markham woman really steal one of those eggs Lizzy had stored and use it to give birth to your son?”
Houston blew out a long breath before he answered. “It seems that way.”
Mack went closer, and Gabrielle used the sound of the man’s footsteps to move farther behind the shelves. She began to inch her way toward the open doors. Maybe Houston’s father would distract him long enough for her to get out of there. That was a long shot, of course, but it was the only one she had.
“Well, hell.” Mack shook his head and propped his hands on his hips. “You gotta get the boy. He’s a Sadler, and he belongs here at the ranch with us. Where is he?”
“I’m not sure,” she heard Houston say.
“Then find him. Hell, I’ll find him.” Gabrielle made it to the door, but Houston was staring at her.
“Don’t worry, I intend to get the baby,” he assured his father. “But for now, I need just a little time to come to grips with this.” Houston paused, swallowed hard and tipped his head to the horse. “Could you see to Bear? I’m going for a walk.”
His father didn’t protest, though he did take his time looking at Houston before he started toward the horse. That was Gabrielle’s cue to get moving again. She darted out from behind the tack shelves and bolted for the door.
She started running. And she didn’t look back.
However, she didn’t have to look back to hear the sound of the racing footsteps behind her. Houston was following her.
Gabrielle wasn’t surprised. In fact, she’d expected it, but she had a good head start on him. She needed to make it to her car, which was still parked in front of the main house so she could try to drive away.
That wouldn’t stop him.
Houston would continue to follow her; but if she could just get back onto the highway, she might be able to lose him. Then, she could pick up Lucas and the nanny and go into hiding again. This time, she wouldn’t come out until she had all of this mess settled.
Gabrielle’s heart pounded harder with each step. Her lungs felt ready to burst. She was out of shape and hadn’t run since early in her pregnancy, but she used every bit of her energy and resolve to race across the yard and to the front. Thankfully, she’d left the car unlocked, and she jerked open the door and dove inside. Not so thankfully, her keys were in her pocket, and she had to dig for them.
She finally pulled them free, jammed the key into the ignition and started the car. She had barely touched the accelerator, when the passenger door flew open and Houston jumped inside.
“Keep going,” Houston demanded.
He wasn’t breathing hard and certainly didn’t look as if he’d just sprinted across his massive yard. But he did look intense. Eyes narrowed. Mouth tight. His jaw muscles were working hard against each other.
“I said keep going,” he repeated. “Drive. Take me to my son. Or I’ll call the sheriff and have him arrest you right now.”
Oh, God. Some choice. Revealing her son’s location or jail.
If she went to jail, it was all over. The nanny, Lily Rose, would eventually start making calls to find out where she was. That would in turn lead the police to Lucas. Then Houston would take him.
But if she pretended to cooperate with Houston, it might buy her some time.
Gabrielle put on her seat belt and drove away from the ranch. Houston put on his belt, too, and then turned to face her.
“I figure you’re up to something,” he accused. “You’re trying to decide the best way to ditch me. That’s not going to happen, Gabrielle. I didn’t come up with this so-called plan to produce a baby, but the child exists now, and I won’t walk away from him.”
Gabrielle knew she should just shut up, but she couldn’t make herself stop. “You might have to walk away when I prove you orchestrated this. I took a picture of the car that followed me, the one registered to you.”
He stayed quiet a moment. “Then why not just go to the police?”
“I considered it. But then I decided you’d have some kind of explanation, or enough cops in your pocket, that I’d be the one who ended up in jail.”
“I don’t own any cops, and there are several logical explanations. Someone could have used fake license plates. Or maybe the photo isn’t clear and you had your friend run the wrong numbers. Stating the obvious, again, but you could also be lying because you think I’ll give you a big payout for giving birth to Lizzy’s and my baby.”
Gabrielle huffed and took the turn to the farm road that would lead her to the highway. From there, she would take the interstate south, the opposite direction she’d need to go if she had any intentions of driving Houston to see Lucas.
“I didn’t lie,” she insisted, though she knew it wouldn’t do any good.
“How much money did you plan to ask for?” Houston wanted to know.
“None. Because Lucas is not for sale.”
Houston obviously ignored that. “How much? Because you know what? As much as this disgusts me, I’ll give you fifty million for him.”
She made a sound of outrage.
“Seventy-five million,” Houston countered.
That did it. Thankfully, there wasn’t anyone behind her because Gabrielle slammed on her brakes. Her tires squealed in protest, and she brought the car to a jarring halt amid the fumes and smoke of the rubber burning on the asphalt.
Gabrielle grabbed him by his shirt, gathering up wads of fabric in her fists, to make sure they would
