Trial by Fire Read Online Free PDF Page B

Holden. “I hear llamas are in here.”
    “We got llamas, ostriches, cattle, horses, chickens, sheep, goats, donkeys.”
    “A petting zoo, eh?” He knew how that was. You grew some for food, ended up with some because you had the land and people dumped them.
    “The sheep are for mutton bustin’, but yeah, for the most part, they’re just here.”
    “That’s where the kids ride sheep?” Roughstock started at a damned early age.
    “It is. It’s cute as hell.” The baby pushed the nipple out of her mouth, and Holden grinned. “Do you want me to burp her now?”
    “Nah, I can—” Goo came right back out of her, and he handed Chloe to Holden. “Sure. Go for it.”
    Holden chuckled and grabbed her up, patting her on the back with a steady motion. Her belch was surprisingly loud for a baby. More like a big drover sucking one back at the pub.
    Not sure what else to do, Lachlan sipped at his coffee. Watched Holden’s face soften, the love in the man’s eyes visible. He loved that little girl, that much was so obvious. What a bloody mess this whole situation was going to be.
    He couldn’t leave Adelaide’s little girl here, his folks wouldn’t have it, but how was he going to manage it?
    “We have to figure this out, don’t we?” he said, not even sure what he meant.
    “Figure what out? I don’t understand.”
    “How to do this. I can’t just—leave. Walk away.”
    “I don’t know,” Holden said. And that was that, wasn’t it? Neither of them knew how to settle anything.
    “If I—” Lachlan stopped, breathed. “If I flew my folks over, could they meet her? They’re a bit hidebound, Mum and Dad, but they’re good people.”
    “Everyone can meet her. They’re Chloe’s grandparents. I mean, they didn’t beat Addie or anything, did they?”
    “No. No, it was just a thing.” This crazy thing that snowballed into Addie running away and never speaking to them again. He didn’t understand.
    “What kind of a thing?” Holden shook his head, held up one hand. “You know, that ain’t none of mine. If she’d wanted to tell me the whole story, she would have, and Landon had his own opinions.”
    Holden grabbed the bottle and fed Chloe the last quarter, and this time she goofed off, playing with the teat rather than attacking it, trying to grab hold of Holden however she could.
    How the living hell could Adelaide have done this? Had a baby and not let them know? How?
    Maybe he needed to ask his parents what the hell had really happened. He’d just assumed it was wild oats on Ades’s part, but who knew? Maybe he’d missed something. Lachlan tended to be wrapped up in station business. He knew she’d chafed at all the security, all the rules, but her leaving had taken him by surprise.
    Holden began to laugh, the man staring down at that baby like she was the center of the damn universe.
    His twin. Holden had lost his twin, and he was coping, better than. He loved Chloe—it was obvious. The tiny man had a core of pure steel.
    Lachlan sighed. This was getting more complicated by the moment. He tugged out his phone and snapped a picture of Chloe making faces to send to his mum.
    She answered by calling him immediately.
    “Do you mind if I take this?”
    “Go for it. I’ll go change her butt and see if she’ll go down for her nap.”
    “Shouldn’t you be asleep?” Lachlan asked when he answered.
    “You sent me photos of my grandchild, of Adelaide’s daughter. How can I sleep? When are you bringing her home?”
    “Not that simple, Mum.” He stood, pacing over to the porch again, wanting to let Holden put Chloe down for her nap.
    “It is. You tell those people that she needs to be home with her family. They let Adelaide do insane things; they allowed this to happen!”
    “You know better than that.” Ades had always been one for speed, danger. She’d married a bull rider, for fuck’s sake.
    “I wouldn’t have allowed it,” she snapped, and he nodded. Mum wanted a proper little girl,