Wildest Dreams: A Small Town, Single Dad Romance (The Wilds of Montana Book 3)
Chapter 25

The ambulance pulls away, and I rush back to my truck, but before I can close the door, I hear someone screaming my name.

“RYAN! Oh, Ryan, I knew you would come for me.”

I spin and stare, not believing what I’m seeing.

“Claudia?”

“Oh, Ryan.” She throws herself into my arms, sobbing on my shoulder. “I knew you’d come.”

“What in the hell are you doing in Montana, of all places?”

“I came, of course,” she says, frowning. “I knew, when you were at my show in Paris, that you wanted me. So, I came. I had to get rid of that annoying little gnat that was attached to you, but I came. And now we can be together.”

Jesus fucking Christ.

“Ry?”

I turn at the sound of my brother’s voice.

“Chase, get her off of me,” I say grimly, wanting nothing more than to follow that ambulance and replace out if Polly’s okay.

“What? No!” Claudia’s gorgeous face turns mutinous as Chase pulls her away. “Ryan, what are you doing?”

“I’m pretty sure she caused the accident,” I say to Chase, ignoring Claudia altogether. I’m so fucking pissed that I’m afraid I’ll do something stupid, like punch her. “Jake will confirm. He saw it all.”

“That rental is in a Claudia DuBois’s name.”

“That’s her,” I reply wearily. “I’ll fill you in later, but I need to get to the hospital. I don’t know how badly Polly’s hurt.”

“What are you talking about?” Claudia demands, her blue eyes wild as she screams. “I’m the one you love. We’re getting married! We’re together, lover. Why are you acting like this?”

Chase’s lips twitch, and I sigh. “I’ll punch you in the face,” I say to him, and he laughs.

“Don’t worry, we’ll take care of her. I’ll want to talk to all three of you, but I’ll come to the hospital after we have this wrapped up.”

I nod and don’t even give Claudia a glance as I walk to my truck and take off to the hospital.

I knew that Claudia wasn’t…right. Based on what I knew of her a couple of years ago, I figured that she most likely had some mental health issues. Hell, she basically stalked me for the better part of a year, and I was not pleased when we ran into her in Paris, but I’d hoped that enough time had passed that she would be mellow about it.

Apparently not.

The fact that she ran the love of my life off the road and tried to kill her means that I have zero sympathy for Claudia, and I’ll make sure that Polly will be pressing charges against her.

Right now, my only focus is Polly and making sure that Jake is okay.

“Polly Allen,” I say immediately when I get to the emergency room. “She was just brought in.”

“Let me check,” the receptionist says and calls back. “I have someone here for Polly. Is she okay to have another visitor? Okay, I’ll send him back.” She hangs up the phone and says to me, “Room seven.”

Before the words are even out of her mouth, I’m rushing through the door that she just buzzed open, looking for room seven, and brush the curtain aside as I step inside.

“Dad,” Jake says quietly. “She’s sleeping again. She has a mild concussion, and we’re waiting to see what the X-ray says about her knee.”

I simply pull Jake into my arms and hug him close. “Thank you for being here with her.”

“Sure, it’s no big deal.”

“It’s a huge deal.” I bump my forehead against his, and then I take Polly’s hand and sit next to her. When Jake starts to leave, I frown up at him. “Where are you going?”

“Well, um, I’m gonna replace something to eat.”

With that, he hurries off, and I feel Polly squeeze my hand.

“Hey,” I say and kiss her knuckles. I hate that she has the beginnings of a black eye and a bandage on her head, near her hairline. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m okay,” she says. “They gave me something for the headache. Bump on the head, and we’re pretty sure the knee is just sprained.”

Relief rushes through me. Jesus, it could have been so much worse.

“Who was in that car?” she asks with a frown. “Was it Melissa?”

“Melissa? No,” I frown over at her. “Why would it be her?”

“I didn’t give her a positive reference for a job.” She swallows hard, as if her mouth is dry. “She’s mad. Left a threatening note on my car.”

I kiss her hand again and make a mental note to have Chase look into Melissa.

“No, it was Claudia DuBois.”

Polly frowns and blinks at me. “What?”

“I know, it’s unbelievable.”

“Ryan, I’ve seen that car all over town. It’s been driving through my neighborhood for a week and was parked down the street from my house. I’ve seen it drive by the shop. I figured a neighbor got a new car.” She tries to sit up straight, obviously agitated, and I lean in to kiss her cheek.

“Hey, easy, babe. I don’t want you to get upset.”

“Too late,” she mutters and closes her eyes. “I wish I had more energy. I want to pace.”

“Stay still. Claudia’s mentally ill,” I tell her. “I told you that I dated her, very briefly, a couple of years ago. Well, after I broke it off, she stalked me for a while. She’d go underground and then pop up, surprising me, showing up in random places all over the world. She’s smart. She was obsessed with me, or, I guess, the idea of me. I’d already upped my security presence because of the other situation, so she didn’t really worry me much. But I alerted the police, and she stopped contacting me and showing up in the same places I would be. I thought she’d moved on.”

“And then we saw her in Paris, and she caused that huge scene.”

“Yes.”

“And you didn’t say anything to me about all of this, even though you told me that you’d been with her.”

I sigh again and rest my forehead on the back of her hand. “I thought it was over. It had been over for a while. I was absolutely not expecting her to decide to hurt you, Polly, or I would have had my men take care of it.”

“I feel like this might be something we should have anticipated,” she says with a frown. “If she was that unhinged before, it makes sense, Ryan.”

“Fuck.” I push my hand through my hair and stand to pace myself.

“Hey, no fair, I can’t do that.”

“I’m sorry,” I say and look down at her, so small and frail looking in that bed. “You’re right, I should have figured she would try something, and I didn’t think of it because I’ve been too focused on you and Jake and this incredible life we’re building. I should have thought of it. I’m smarter than that.”

“Yeah, you are. But your security team should have thought of it, too.”

I stop and nod. “You’re right. That’s their job. I suspect after Claudia is charged with attempted murder, assault, stalking, and any other charges we can bring against her, we won’t have to worry about her anymore.”

Polly takes a deep breath, lets it out, and her bottom lip starts to quiver.

“Ah, baby.”

I rush back over to her and pull her against me.

“I’m so sorry, my love. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s not your fault,” she says with a sniff. “I’m extra emotional these days, and maybe the past hour is catching up with me. But we have to talk, Ry.”

“I’m right here.”

She starts to speak, but the doctor comes in with a smile.

“Good news,” he says as he puts films on a light board and turns it on. “No break. Looks like you just wrenched the knee, so you’ll need ice and some ibuprofen for that. Oh, wait,” he consults the chart, “you’ll want to stay away from ibuprofen if you can. Let’s stick with Tylenol, but if that doesn’t help, you can take a small dose of the other, but not after twenty weeks. I’ll write that down for you.”

I frown. Twenty weeks of what? She’ll have knee pain for that long? I’m no doctor, but that doesn’t sound right.

“Let me get some discharge instructions printed for you, and you can go home,” he says. “Take it easy, and be sure to see your doctor as soon as possible.”

“Thank you,” Polly says as he leaves the room. She turns to me, and her green eyes suddenly look guarded. “I have to tell you something.”

“Okay.”

She blows out a breath and then bites her lower lip.

“Hey, it’s okay. What’s up?”

“Oh, Jesus, this is harder than I thought.”

I narrow my eyes on her. “Polly, I’m going to need you to say what you need to say, please.”

“I’m pregnant.”

I blink rapidly and feel all the blood drain from my face as she stares up at me.

“You’re pregnant?”

“Yeah. I literally just found out this afternoon, and I was on my way out to the ranch to talk to you when the accident happened. I wasn’t keeping it from you, Ryan. I promise.”

“Okay.” I nod and take this in.

“I suspect it happened in Paris,” she continues. “I screwed up the timing of my pill because of the time change, and even missing it by like eight hours appears to be enough for your superhuman sperm to do their thing.”

I shove my hands into my pockets as I watch her face. I can’t tell how she’s feeling.

“Say something,” she finally says.

“How do you feel about this?” I ask her.

“I’m not thrilled,” she admits and then closes her eyes. “And I feel guilty about that. But, Ryan, we’re just starting, and I’m still building a business, and it’s just really bad timing. And by the look on your face, you’re not exactly elated about it.”

“I’m actually really happy,” I reply, “but I need to know what you feel. Let’s get you out of here and home, and then we can talk.”

“Okay.” She licks her lips and nods just as Jake comes strolling in with Chase right behind him.

“Do you need to ask her questions right now?” I ask him, shoving my hands into my pockets. “Or can you talk to her tomorrow?”

“I’m not here for that,” he says, shaking his head. “I’ll do a formal interview tomorrow. I wanted to stop in to make sure Polly’s okay.”

I smile at my brother and then down at the love of my life, lying in that bed.

“I’m going to be okay,” she assures him. “Thank you for stopping by.”

“That’s what brothers do,” he says, clapping me on the shoulder. “It’s what family does. You call any one of us if you need anything.”

“Thank you,” I tell him. “Will you call the others?”

“Already done,” he says. “They’ll be checking in with you later. I’m headed out on another call. You get better.”

“I’ll do my best,” Polly says with a smile as Chase leaves.

“Did you guys…talk?” Jake asks.

“He knows,” Polly assures him, and Jake offers me his fist for a bump.

“Isn’t it cool? We’re having a baby. I’m gonna be a brother. Sorry that I found out first, but the EMT asked in the ambulance, and I was there. I swore I wouldn’t say anything, though. It’s gonna be totally cool. Did they spring us? Can we go home?”

I lock eyes with Polly, who’s grinning from ear to ear.

She may be conflicted, but it’s clear that she loves Jake and the fact that they shared a secret, even for a little while.

“Yeah, we can go,” I tell him and then turn to Polly. “I’d like to take you to the ranch.”

“I’d like to go to the ranch,” she replies and holds her hand out for mine, which I immediately take and kiss her knuckles. “Thank you.”

“We’re going to figure everything out,” I assure her.

“I’m going down to the stables,” Jake says later, after we get Polly situated on the couch with an ice pack on her knee. “Do the afternoon chores.”

“Oh, Jake,” Polly says with a frown. “Did you miss practice?”

“It’s okay,” he says with a shrug. “No big.”

“You’ll have to sit out of the game tomorrow,” she says. “Oh, shit, I’m sorry.”

“Seriously, it’s okay,” he assures her, then smiles. “I had to stay with you. It was way more important.”

Then he’s off, and I finish making sure Polly is comfortable and lay a cool pack on her forehead.

“I’m going to run outside for a second. I’ll be right back. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” she assures me and lifts her chin so I will kiss her lips. “Thank you.”

“Christ, I could have lost you today.” I can’t resist pressing my lips to her cheek as every worst nightmare runs through my mind.

“You didn’t.” She cups my face in her hand and smiles up at me with so much love, it takes my breath away. “I’m right here, and I’m not going anywhere.”

“Good. I’ll be back before you know it. There’s something I have to do.”

I texted Axel a few minutes ago and asked him to meet me by the garage. I don’t want to do this in the house where Polly could hear me.

Axel is waiting for me when I approach.

“What in the ever-loving fuck am I paying you for?” I want to punch him in the face, so I stop twenty feet away, where he’s out of reach.

“Mr. Wild, we had no reason to think that Claudia would come here.”

“She’s been erratic in the past,” I remind him. “Why wouldn’t you have kept eyes on her after the incident in Paris?”

He blows out a breath and hooks his thumbs in his pockets. “It didn’t occur to us.”

“And it almost killed Polly!” I’ve never been so fucking livid. “The entire security detail is on notice. If any one of you so much as sneezes wrong, you’re out of here. This was a mistake that will not be tolerated.”

“Sir.”

I can see the anger radiating off him, and it only fuels my own.

“Do you have a problem with that?”

“No, sir.”

“Then explain to me why you look pissed off right now.”

“Because you’re right.” His hard eyes replace mine. “We fucked up. I fucked up. I know better, and I should have anticipated it. If you want my resignation, I’ll give it to you.”

I pause, watching him.

“Ten minutes ago, I would have taken it.”

He doesn’t flinch.

“Don’t you ever fuck up like that again.”

“No, sir.”

I’m on my way back to the house when my phone rings, and I see that it’s Remington on the screen.

“Hey.”

“How is she?” he immediately asks.

“She’s going to be fine,” I reply, emotion running through me. Jesus, I’ve never felt like falling apart the way I do right now. “It was scary, but she’s okay.”

“Good. I’m glad to hear that. Do you need anything?”

This. This is all I’ve needed from Rem for the past six years. “I can’t think of anything off the top of my head.”

He’s quiet for a heartbeat, and then, “I’m not good at apologies. You know that.”

I swallow hard and sit on the steps that lead up to my front door. “Yeah, none of us are.”

“You’ve apologized,” he disagrees. “And I’ve been a jerk about it. I’m not sorry about the way I reacted back then. My feelings weren’t wrong.”

“I get that.”

“But I’m tired of being pissed off at you, and I miss you. So, I’m sorry for not working things out before this.”

I clear my throat, glad that no one is around to see the tears fill my eyes.

“Thanks for that.”

“And if you need anything, we’re just a few minutes away.”

I nod, even though he can’t see me. “I appreciate it.”

“Okay, then.”

“Rem.” There’s a pause on the other end of the line, waiting for me. “I’m really so sorry.”

“I know. We’re okay, little brother. Call if you need me.”

“Same goes.”

We hang up, and I drop my head into my hands and let the onslaught of emotion hit me.

Relief that she’s okay.

Anger at my security team.

Love for my family.

Anticipation for a new baby.

It’s been a lot for one day.

Climbing the stairs, I let myself into the house and walk into the living room, where Polly’s lounging on the couch, looking at something on her phone. She sets it down on her lap when she sees me coming, and I sit on the table across from Polly and lean my elbows on my knees.

“Let’s talk, babe.” Every time I think about the fact that she’s pregnant, I get butterflies, and I want to get excited, but until I know exactly what Polly’s feeling, I don’t want to show it. I don’t want to influence her.

“Are you okay?” she asks. “You look shaken.”

“It’s been one hell of a day,” I reply with a rueful smile. “I’m going to be fine. I just want to hear what’s going on in your gorgeous mind.”

“Do you want more children?” she asks me, reaching for my hand. “We’ve never talked about it.”

“Yeah, I do.” If it means having them with Polly, I’ll have a dozen more. “I like kids, and I’ve discovered that I’m kind of good at being a dad.”

“You’re an excellent dad,” she says with a soft smile. “I don’t have any question about that.”

“What about you? Do you want kids?” I’m watching every emotion cross her beautiful face. There’s hope and fear and then hope again.

“Yes. Definitely. But I wasn’t planning on it happening now. I’ve worked really hard on my business, and I love the IWC.”

“No one said anything about you giving those things up.”

“But my attention will be split,” she says.

“Erin and Abbi do it. London does it. And I hate to be the one to point this out to you, but I’m here, too. I have no intention of giving up my businesses, either. We have families, and we can hire help if we need it.”

She bites her lip and nods. “I guess that’s true.”

“Hey.” I lean in closer and drag my fingertips down her jawline. “Be brutally honest with me. What has you hesitating? Do you want to end the pregnancy?”

“No,” she says immediately, and my shoulders drop with relief. “Okay, I’m just going to purge out everything that’s running through my head.”

“Great. I’d love for you to do that.”

“I feel so guilty,” she says, surprising me. “I assured you that I had the birth control covered, and I did. I do. I can be really forgetful, but never when it comes to that. I have alarms set. I would never be irresponsible when it comes to that.”

“I know you wouldn’t.”

“But when we went to Paris, my alarms got screwy because of the time change. I didn’t even think of it, and I feel so stupid because I should have thought of it. It makes total sense. And now, I’m pregnant, and I don’t want you to think that I’m trying to trap you or that I’m some kind of gold-digging asshole, and I know people are going to talk, and that makes me so mad. I don’t like surprises like this. Having a family isn’t something that should sneak up on you. We should have had the chance to do it on our own terms, when we were ready.”

She swipes at tears, and it just about rips my heart out of my chest.

“And you’re so stoic about it. Jake was excited. He isn’t mad at all that I’m bringing another baby into the family, and it’s going to take your attention away from him. He took it really well, but you haven’t even cracked a smile, and I’m afraid that you think I’m a gold digger and that you want me to end the pregnancy, but I don’t want to do that. I’m just confused, and if you were excited, I think I’d get more excited. But I just found out today, and I’m totally freaking out.”

“Breathe.” I kiss her forehead as she takes a deep breath. “Honey, I am excited. I’m fucking thrilled, but I’ve been trying to keep that in check because I can see that you have conflicting emotions about this, and I’m trying to support you.”

“Okay, but show me that you’re happy.”

I laugh and kiss her, framing her face and breathing her in, relieved that she’s safe and whole and here with me.

“I love you,” I tell her, feeling a little panic when her eyes fill again. “I told you that the other night, and I’ve told you every day since.”

“I love you, too,” she whispers.

“This doesn’t change that. Not at all. If anything, I love you more. Babe, I intend to build a life with you. That’s what I meant when I said move in here with us. We’re starting a life together, and now that includes someone new.”

“Yeah, I guess so.” She sniffs and takes another breath, readjusting the ice on her knee. “I wish we had more time together before this happened.”

“We’re going to have time,” I assure her. “This baby isn’t an imposition. No more than Jake would be. Sure, it’s quicker than we thought, but we just pivot, babe. I live my life pivoting, and it’s going pretty well for me so far.”

She smiles at me, those beautiful green eyes finally full of happiness and hope. “We’re having a baby, Ryan Wild.”

“It’s a good thing I built a big house.” I kiss her softly. “We have lots of space for a dozen babies.”

“A dozen.” She laughs and drags her hand down my chest. “Let’s start with one and see how that goes.”

“I can live with that.” I pull my fingertips down her jawline. “You are every wildest dream I’ve ever had come true. As long as we’re together, we’ll figure everything else out.”

“You say some really sweet things, you know.”

“It’s the truth.”

“I have an idea,” Jake says as he walks into the room and then stops short. “Whoops. I’ll come back after you’re done sucking face.”

“We’re done,” Polly says with a laugh. “What’s your idea?”

“Well, a while back, Dad and I were talking about what we should call this ranch, since it doesn’t have a name yet.”

“You said you’d think about it,” I reply, remembering. “What did you come up with?”

Jake clears his throat and licks his lips, suddenly nervous. “Maybe it’s stupid.”

“Not stupid,” I reply. “Let’s hear it.”

He shoves his hands into his pockets. “Rising Hope Ranch. Because some of us came here to heal but found love instead. Found hope.”

“Even me,” I murmur and look over at Polly. “What do you think of that?”

“Me?”

“Yeah, you,” Jake says. “I mean, you’re gonna live here, too. And you get two votes because there’s two of you.”

“First, I vote that Jake is in charge of always telling me that I get two votes,” Polly says, making us laugh. “And second, yeah. I think that’s beautiful, Jake. What a great name.”

“It’s settled then.” I grin at my boy. “Rising Hope Ranch.”

“Sounds like home to me,” Jake says before rushing off to raid the kitchen, and I turn to Polly, who’s smiling over at me.

“Sounds like home,” she agrees softly.