Heartless: A Small Town Single Dad Romance

Willa: Why did you leave me a Post-it note saying, No panties today?

Willa: That just ruins the surprise.

Cade: Because I want easy access.

Willa: Cade Eaton. This is a family event.

Cade: Hasn’t stopped you before.

Willa: That was a one-time thing.

Cade: No, it wasn’t. It was a precedent-setter.

Willa: Luke is going to be able to read these soon.

Cade: Did you change the subject because you know I’m right?

A smile breaks out on my face when Jasper hops up on a horse. “Thanks for coming out.”

He winks at me. “You know I wouldn’t miss it. I love sitting on the sidelines as not to violate my contract.”

I shake my head. “And we just love having the one and only Jasper Gervais here to grace us with his presence while we work the cattle.”

The expression he gives me is dry—sarcastic somehow. No one is more uncomfortable with his fame than Jasper.

“Lighten up. You know this is one of my favorite events of the year. Really is nice to have you out here.”

“Did you just tell me to lighten up?” Shock bleeds into his tone.

That’s when a chorus of hoots breaks out along the fence line behind me. Everyone is here. Willa, Summer, Rhett, and other friends from town.

I turn and catch two matching flashes of blonde hair waltzing down to the pen and my dad with an expression that looks like he just saw Elvis Presley come back from the dead.

“Violet! You’re gonna give me a heart attack, girl!” My dad wraps his arms around our little sister, and she’s so petite that she almost disappears in his embrace.

“Surprise, Dad!”

He holds her back and takes her in. “Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes.” He turns to our cousin. “You too, Sloane. Who knew the little barn brats would grow up to be such beautiful young women?”

God, Harvey is fucking gushing. Sloane comes around now and then since becoming some sort of prima ballerina, but Violet has become something of a sensation herself—a world famous racehorse jockey out on the coast, with a whole damn family—so she’s not back nearly as often.

I can’t help but grin again. Seem to do a lot of that lately.

I ride over with Jasper following.

“Baby sister,” I say.

“Big brother.” She beams up at me. “Almost didn’t recognize you with that smile on your face.”

I hop off and frown at her dramatically before folding her into a hug. “Where’s Cole?”

“Oh, your man crush?” she quips because yeah, I like the guy. She married a good one. “He’s wrangling the tiny humans so I can wrangle some cows.”

“Yeah?” I pull back and eye her skeptically.

“Hell yeah.” She claps her hands and brushes them together like she’s ready for the challenge. “Bet I can still throw a rope better than you.”

I just shake my head before turning to Sloane. She’s standing beside Violet but has her full attention on Jasper, like she has since she was a kid.

And he’s fucking clueless, like he has been since he was a kid.

He says they’re “good friends.” And maybe they are, maybe I’m reading into something that isn’t there.

All I know is that in those early days, everyone looked at Jasper like he might come apart at any moment. But Sloane looked at him like he hung the moon.

“Good to see you, Sloane. It’s been a while. Keeping busy with the dancing?” That probably sounds dumb, but I don’t know how to put it. Not a big ballet guy myself.

She smiles at me and before she can talk, Violet grabs her left hand and holds it up. “She’s keeping busy with wedding planning!”

“Wedding? Well, shit, Sloane. You’ve been holding out on us.” I reach out to give her a hug. “Congratulations. When’s the big day?”

“November, I think,” is her soft reply, eyes darting back to where Jasper is still seated on his mount.

“This November?” he asks from beside me.

“Yeah.” She tucks a piece of hair behind her ear, now keeping her eyes focused on me.

“Who is the guy? I’ve never even met this person.” I cross my arms over my chest, feeling Blueberry nudge me from behind.

“Jesus, you guys.” Violet waves a hand in front of us. “Overbearing much? And you all wonder why I moved away so I could date? She’s in her twenties. She doesn’t need y’all to play bodyguard.”

Jasper and I scoff in unison.

Violet’s nose tips up and she ignores us. “I’m having dinner with them when Sloane takes me back to the airport on Monday, so I’ll be the one to pass judgment on him.”

It’s Sloane who laughs now, smiling and shaking her head a little. “You mean the one to meet him? Because you’re the one who isn’t overbearing? Right?”

Rhett butts in now. “Ooh. Called out. Looks like you aren’t so different from us after all, Fancypants.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Violet waves us all off with a grin. “Just show everyone that massive rock and stop picking on me. It’s making Cade smile and that’s just weird.”

Sloane lips tip up but her cheeks wobble. It’s not the way I’d be smiling if I were set to marry Willa in a few short months. She holds her hand out demurely, and sure enough, the stone is massive. Her family wouldn’t have it any other way.

A chorus of congratulations ring out around us. Everyone oohs and ahhs over the ring, and Jasper hops off his horse, giving the girls a soft smile. He ruffles Violet’s hair before congratulating Sloane.

She reaches for him, and he wraps her in a bear hug, resting the palm of his hand against the back of her head as she presses her forehead to his chest.

It reminds me of running my fingers through Willa’s hair, and I instantly search for her in the group of people. I find her easily, standing there smiling, wearing skin-tight jeans and holding our boy’s hand.

And fuck, it looks good.

“Vi, come meet Willa.” I don’t specify her role. I don’t call her my nanny because that’s not true. And I don’t call her my friend because that’s sure as shit not true either.

“Ooh! Yes! Willa.” Violet turns, and a genuine smile breaks out across her face when her eyes land on Willa and Luke. “I have heard so much about you,” is what she says as she strides toward them.

“Likewise.” Willa grins back at her, and I just know these two will get along famously.

I don’t miss the little wink Violet gives me over Willa’s shoulder as they hug.

Harvey and his big fucking mouth. Telling everyone and their dog about Willa and me ever since that day I carried Willa off over my shoulder. Like if he tells enough people he’ll make it happen or something.

“Okay, we good?” I shout, wanting to get this show on the road so I can kick back with a cold brew. Probably lay my girl out and have a midnight snack too, find out if she followed my instructions.

She probably didn’t. And I love that about her.

Shit, I love her, period.

You should tell her. Summer’s words pop up in my head often. I should tell her but I’m fucking terrified, so I push it aside and get my ass in gear. It’s a problem for another day.

Within the hour, everyone is saddled up and we get to work. Vaccinating. Tagging. Shit-talking.

And wouldn’t you know it, my baby sister still throws a better rope than me.

I feel the snap when I get slammed into the metal panel. “Fuck!”

“Cade?” Jasper jumps off his mount at the same time as Rhett, and they race toward me.

“Fucking, fuck!” I clutch my hand to my chest and searing pain shoots through it.

Both guys are climbing the fence to get to me.

“Jasper, don’t you dare come in this fucking shoot, you crazy motherfucker. If you get hurt, this entire country will hate me.” It’s an Olympic year. I can’t injure our nation’s number one goalie.

“Too late, asshole,” he murmurs before hopping down while Rhett adjusts the gates to keep the cows away from me.

I hold my hand protectively, hoping if I just breathe through my nose for a minute the pain will pass.

I’ve been at this long enough to know better.

“Is it broken?” Rhett hollers while Jasper gives me an unimpressed glare that says I need to show him my hand.

“You’re a fucking hockey player. Not a doctor.”

“I’m smart enough to make an educated guess.” Jasper gives me his best bitchy look. And honestly, it’s pretty good.

I hold my right hand out with an irritated sigh, pinky and ring finger already looking totally swollen.

“Oh, yeah. It’s broken,” Rhett announces.

“And you’re a retired bull rider. What the fuck do you know?”

He shrugs. “Well, I know what broken bones look like. And you’ve got them.”

“I agree,” Jasper tosses in, folding the brim of his cap over his forehead.

“This is like a stupid joke. A hockey player and a bull rider walk into a doctor’s office . . .”

“Cade. You need to get X-rays.”

I slump against the metal fencing behind me and groan. “It was the last batch. I just wanted a beer and a hot tub.”

“No problem, bro.” Rhett slaps me on the shoulder hard enough that my fingers ache. “I’ll grab you one for the road. Also, Summer told me to never go in that hot tub again. The fuck you been doing in there?”

“Get fucked, Rhett. I use chlorine tabs in there and test the water regularly.”

“Is the water pregnant yet?” he tosses over his shoulder while jogging away.

“Dick,” I mutter, gingerly holding my hand and feeling my arms shake.

“What can I do?” Jasper asks gently.

“Get Willa,” is what I say. Because she’s the only person I want right now.

He stares at me with his soulful eyes and nods. He’s walking back with her within minutes.

She looks pale, her eyes pinched, but she doesn’t fuss over me. That’s not her personality, and I think I love her even more for it.

“Fancy meeting you here, Eaton. You try to be a hero and break some fingers?” She’s doing the thing where she defuses her anxiety with humor, but I let her. Her sarcasm is a good distraction right now.

Rhett is back and hands me an already cracked beer. “No. He was trying to be a hero and get that calf’s leg out by himself.”

I hold the beer up in Willa’s direction. “Cheers, baby. You get to play nurse today.”

“Oh, yeah?” She draws closer, running a hand over my shoulder and down my arm to hold my hand. As she assesses the quickly darkening digits, she adds, “I think I dressed up as that for Halloween one year.”

Jesus. What didn’t this woman dress as for Halloween?

I groan and let my eyes flutter shut to the sound of my brothers having a good chuckle around me. The last thing I need is a rock-hard dick to go along with my broken fingers.

“Okay, champ. Off to the hospital we go.” Willa slides her hand around my back. “I got him from here, boys. The girls have Luke. I think he’s in heaven with two blondes paying attention to him.”

“Talk about mommy issues,” Rhett jokes to a chorus of groans. Leave it to him to say something inappropriate right now.

“Fucking clown,” I mutter as I absently press a kiss to Willa’s head.

It’s eerily quiet for a moment because I realize I just kissed my nanny in front of these two jokers and didn’t even think twice about it.

Willa clears her throat to break the silence.

“We’ll finish the cows and then come to the hospital,” Jasper says.

Rhett scoffs. “It’s fucking broken fingers. I think he’ll make it through.”

I laugh because this sucks and Rhett is certifiable. “Thanks, guys.”

Then we’re off, silently walking back to the barn where I parked. When I meet Willa’s eyes, they’re wide and concerned, so I whisper, “Don’t worry, baby. I’m going to be fine.”

She sniffles and rolls her shoulders back. “I know,” she replies, always putting on that tough facade.

“Were you worried?” I ask as I settle into the passenger seat of my parked truck.

“Of course,” she replies, voice even as she hops into the driver’s seat. “I don’t know how well you’ll be able to finger bang me with your left hand.”

I chuckle and smile the rest of the way to the hospital because there is only one person in the world who could make me laugh in a moment like this.

It hits me hard as we drive in a companionable silence that Willa is that person.

My person.

The hospital in Chestnut Springs is small. Staffing is a constant issue. Wait times are brutal.

I guess having to wait several hours shouldn’t surprise me. First, in the general waiting area. Second, X-rays. Last, back to a private room where we wait some more.

Willa holds my good hand the entire time, thumb stroking at the top, and somehow that numbs the pain of my fingers.

Willa’s eyes bug out when a doctor walks into our waiting room with her face turned down to the clipboard in her hands. “Winter?”

The doctor’s head snaps up, icy eyes widening only momentarily.

“Like Summer’s sister, Winter?” I blurt because I’ve heard stories about this woman. Summer’s estranged sister. Like major family drama levels of estranged. Rhett told me about the blow up one day over a few beers, and it sounds like it’s out of a daytime soap opera to me.

Fucking rich city people, man.

“Yes.” Her lips thin, and her heels click against the floor as she shuts the door. “The one and only. I’m sure you’ve heard only good things,” she says dryly before adding, “but I promise your fingers are in excellent hands, Mr. Eaton.”

Hoo boy. Another woman who could use someone to tell her some good things about herself. I watch her tense movements, the way her lips purse when she glances at Willa. She looks like Summer, but also not at all.

Winter and Summer . . . whoever did that to them deserves a kick to the balls.

“Winter, how are you? What are you doing here?” Willa asks, her voice soft and wary as the petite woman pulls on a pair of latex gloves.

Winter ignores her questions. It’s like they don’t even register on her face.

“Let’s see your fingers, Mr. Eaton.” She holds her hand out to me and I put it in hers, wincing as I do. Her dainty fingers prod so gently that I barely even feel them. “Both fingers are broken. The breaks are fairly clean, but from what I can see on the X-rays, there are some bone chips floating in there. We could do a surgical repair—”

“I don’t—”

She cuts me right back off with a pointed look. “I’m still speaking.” Good God, this woman is kind of terrifying. I clamp my mouth shut and widen my eyes to tell her she can go on.

“Like I was saying, we could operate and tidy things up immediately, but my inclination is to avoid surgery when possible. So the other option is to splint these and let them heal. Hope those chips sort of dissolve on their own and see how you feel. If they’re still causing issues, we can operate down the road. It’s a trade-off. Heal faster now in the hopes you don’t need surgery later, or still have issues and be laid out twice. It’s up to you.”

She’s very direct, very matter-of-fact. Some people might think her bedside manner leaves something to be desired, but I kind of like her. She speaks to me like I’m capable of making a decision, and she isn’t pushing treatment down my throat.

Her voice is gentler than I expected based on the stories I heard, and her eyes less vicious. They’re more . . . sad. Rimmed with dark circles.

“There are physiotherapy options and alternative health options that can help with rehabilitation from an injury like this,” she carries on, scribbling on the chart before her.

“Alternative health options?” I ask, scrunching my face.

She pulls her gloves off with a snap to write something down on her chart. “I’d recommend acupuncture to start,” she replies without even looking up at me.

“Okay.” I glance at Willa, who is still staring at her best friend’s sister, almost like she’s seen a ghost. “Let’s go the more conservative route.”

“Great.” She smiles but it’s pained. “I’ll get someone in here to fix you up and then you can be on your way. I’m sure you’re tired of waiting.” She stands and marches out the door, the picture of unaffected professionalism.

But Willa takes off after her.