Free The Cowbear's Curvy Christmas (Curvy Bear Ranch 2) by Liv Brywood Page B

stick?” she half-joked.
    “No. But I’ll sit outside and wait for you.”
    “This is so weird.”
    “Life can be weird.”
    As they walked into the house, she couldn’t help but smile. “Thanks.”
    “Let me know what you need and I’ll get it for you.”
    Upstairs, she slowed her pace. “I need to do this alone.”
    “I’ll be downstairs.” He grabbed her hand. “Regardless of the outcome, I’m here for you. Okay?”
    “Okay.”
    When she entered the bathroom, a fresh wave of nausea overwhelmed her. She dropped to her knees in front of the toilet. The pit of her stomach hollowed as she dry heaved. Nothing came up but fear.
    She stood and washed her hands. After splashing water on her face, she stared at her pale reflection. Dark smudges lined the bottoms of her eyes. Her pale lips pressed together. She set the wrapped stick on the counter and eyed it warily. Part of her wanted to throw it in the trash and pretend that this wasn’t happening. But she had to know the truth.
    Two minutes later, she stood over the stick and watched in horror as the blue plus sign appeared in the small window. Her hand flew to cover her mouth. “No.”
    A soft knock sounded on the bedroom door. Her knees wobbled as she crossed the room. She opened the door and fell into Mack’s arms.
    “Shh…” he murmured.
    “It’s… it’s positive. Oh, God. What am I going to do?”
    “You don’t have to decide right this second.”
    “I have to tell Ben.”
    He pulled her closer, wrapping her in his strength. As he held her, she sobbed against his chest. In his arms, she could unleash the torrent of tears she’d been holding back. Several minutes passed before her tears finally dried up.
    Her horse voice took on a haunted quality. “I have to tell him, don’t I?”
    “I can’t tell you what to do with your life.”
    “But it’s the right thing to do. I can’t hide his baby from him. Regardless of what happened between us, it would be wrong to keep it from him.”
    He stroked her hair. “My brother just went through something like that. It hurt him more than you could know.”
    “That’s why I need to tell him.”
    He relaxed his embrace. “I’ll give you some time alone. I’ll go get lunch started.”
    “I’m supposed to be doing that.”
    “I’m happy to help.”
    “You’re so good to me.”
    “My mom raised me to be a gentleman. It’s in my blood.”
    She gave him a soft kiss on his cheek. “She did a good job.”
    As Mack left the room, he closed the door. She reached for her cell phone and took a deep breath before dialing. Ben picked up on the second ring.
    “Where have you been?” he asked in an angry tone.
    “Away.”
    “You need to come home so we can talk.”
    “I can’t. I’m working.”
    “Working?” he asked as if he couldn’t wrap his mind around the concept.
    “Yes, working.”
    “Where?”
    “I’m on a ranch in Montana.”
    “Jesus Christ, Madison. You should be here in Seattle with me. What the hell are you doing on a ranch?”
    She sighed. There was no point in trying to cushion the blow, so she blurted it out. “I’m pregnant.”
    The silence on the other end of the line lasted so long that she glanced at the screen to make sure he hadn’t hung up on her. The numbers depicting the length of the call continued to click up.
    “Ben?”
    “You need to come home.”
    “I can’t. Not right now. I’ll come back after Christmas and then we can discuss a custody arrangement.”
    “The hell we will! You’d better get on the next plane and come home or I’ll hunt you down.”
    Anger coiled around her belly and steeled her spine. “No. I just called to tell you about the baby. I’m not going to come back to you. This doesn’t change anything between us.”
    “I’m not going to have a bastard child running around.”
    “Well if you’d kept your dick in your pants, you wouldn’t have this problem.”
    “Why are you so caught up on one indiscretion? It happened once. Get