The Forest Ranger's Child. Leigh Bale

Shelby closed the door and waved goodbye. And then Hank got into the truck and drove away. Not one word passed between them.

       Nate wished he dared speak to Lily. At least she had a place to stay, but her relationship with her father didn’t look like it’d improved much. The thought of Hank upsetting Lily in her condition bothered Nate. No matter what was going on between them, Lily’s unborn child needed protection.

       So did she.

       Starting the ignition, Nate put his vehicle into gear and pressed the accelerator. He tried to tell himself to think about the timber study sitting on his desk at work. Tried not to care.

       Maybe he should pay a visit to Emerald Ranch later on. Then again, maybe he should mind his own business and stay far away from Lily Hansen and her father.

      * * *

       The sound of the rumbling engine filled Lily’s ears as she sat tense in her seat. The silence between her and Dad grew louder by the minute.

       She’d clicked on her seat belt before loosening the strap across the swell of her lower abdomen. A blanket of contentment rested over her. Her baby was okay. The little girl’s heartbeat was strong and Lily had felt several hard thumps earlier that morning, the stirrings of life inside of her.

       “You hungry?” Dad asked without looking at her.

       “No, thank you.”

       They drove down Main Street and headed outside of town with several more minutes passing in silence.

       “You’re lucky Nate Coates found you when he did. He’s a good man. He rode the professional rodeo circuit before he got injured like me. He won all-around cowboy fifteen years ago. Then he went to college to become a forest ranger.”

       Lily bit her tongue to keep from uttering a derogative statement. Tommy had traveled often so he could compete in rodeos. She’d waited at home for his return, wondering why he never seemed to win anything. And then his wife had called. Tommy had been cheating on both of them with one-night stands in every town. Buckle babes who followed the rodeo circuit looking for nothing but a good time. When Lily had confronted Tommy with the truth, he’d…

       No! She wouldn’t think about that now. Never again would Lily subject herself to that kind of treatment. Maybe she deserved it, but her child didn’t.

       In her younger years, Dad had been gone all the time, competing on the professional circuit. Until a bull had gored his shoulder and ended his career. Lily had no desire to be friends with a rodeo-going forest ranger. No sirree.

       “I suppose you’ll need some new clothes,” Dad said. “Your bedroom’s just as you left it, but I doubt there’re many clothes in the closet that’ll fit you now.”

       “I’ll make out fine with what’s there, Dad.” Even if she had to wash the clothes on her back every night, she would not ask her father for another single thing other than food. She remembered she had some oversize T-shirts in one of her dresser drawers and would wear them.

       He cleared his throat. “We’ll drive into Reno for some shopping. Maybe on Friday, after you’ve had a couple of days to rest.”

       “I don’t want to put you out.”

       “You’ve got to have clothes.” His stubborn tone sounded final.

       She angled her body to face him and reached out to briefly touch his arm. “I’m sorry, Daddy. I didn’t know where else to go. I wish I could go back in time and do things differently, but I can’t. I can only apologize and move forward. Please believe me when I say I’ve changed.”

       He blinked and licked his lips. “Well, I suppose you showed good judgment in coming home at least. I’m glad I’m good for something.”

       Lily tensed. “Don’t say that, Dad. You’re the best horseman I’ve ever met.”

       He snorted. “Just not much of a father.”

       “That’s not true. You’re my father. And if I wished you away, I’d have to wish myself away because I’m a part of you and Mom. And I won’t do that, no matter how bad things get.”

       “Sometimes we bring hardships on ourselves, girl. It’s no one’s fault but our own.”

       “Dad, I’m not a girl anymore. I’m a woman. And you’re right. I’ve done a lot of things I regret. But now I want to start fresh. All I’m asking is for you to help me do that. I won’t let you down again.”

       He looked startled but didn’t comment. She didn’t want to argue with him, not about this. She knew her father to be a man of his word. And once he told her he’d help her, she knew he meant it. But he obviously didn’t like the circumstances. Neither did she.

       He coughed, a deep hacking sound.

       “Do you have a cold?” she asked.

       “Something like that. It’s getting better now.”

       As they passed through Emerald Valley, Lily tensed, the memory of the flood rushing through her with icy fingers. But Dad didn’t take the normal route. Instead, they passed over the river on a tall Bailey bridge farther downstream.

       “When did they put this up?” she asked.

       “Two weeks ago. With all the flooding we’ve been having, the ranger made some calls. The governor contacted the Army Corps of Engineers, who brought in men to build several bridges like this so we ranchers have a safe way in and out of the valley. Even the school bus takes this route. You just didn’t know about it.”

       “Well, I do now.” And it’d be a long time before she willingly drove through the area where she’d been caught in the flash flood.

       Once they passed the flood zone, she relaxed and took a moment to study Dad more closely. The pasty, leathered skin and deep creases around his eyes. The calloused hands and gray hair. She’d been gone a long time. Too long. When had her father gotten so old?

       “I reckon you’re planning to keep the baby, right?” he asked.

       Hearing her own question voiced out loud made her pause. “I’m thinking of giving her up for adoption once she’s born.”

       “It’s a girl?”

       “Yes.”

       “Well, I’m glad you decided not to get rid of her.”

       The thought made Lily stare. She could never do such a thing. She just couldn’t. “Abortion was never an option for me.”

       “Harrumph. At least your mother and I taught you some good things, then.”

       A bristle of resentment shivered up her spine, but she realized what he said was true. She just didn’t want to argue with him anymore. She wanted peace. “Yes, you did, Daddy. But more than that, I couldn’t do such a thing. A couple of years ago, I worked with a woman who was adopted and she loved her parents.”

       His bushy eyebrows lifted. “Why don’t you want to raise the kid yourself?”

       The truck hit a pothole and Lily gripped the arm rest tight. “I don’t have a father for my baby and I think kids deserve two parents, if possible. So I figured adoption was the best choice.”

       “Where is the dad?” Dad’s voice rose slightly, but she could tell he was doing an admirable job of controlling his voracious temper.

       “He…he’s gone. And I wouldn’t go back to him even if he asked me to.”

       “Why not? He was good enough to father your child. Wasn’t he good enough to be a husband?”

       Heat flushed her cheeks. She didn’t want to tell Dad about the abuse she’d suffered at Tommy’s hands, or that he was already married with children. Knowing Dad’s temper, he might hunt down Tommy and try to kill him. “No, Dad, he’s not. I just need a safe place to stay until