Owen stared out the windshield of the Denali as he drove through town on his way up the mountain to the apartment above Emma’s kennel. Every storefront was lit up and decorated for the holiday, every house with a tree shining bright in a window or even out on the porch, welcoming guests.
On the edge of town, he passed Jolie’s house and looked for Quinn’s truck but didn’t see it. Quinn and Jolie were making things work, but Quinn had given up his nomad ways, working as Ian’s eyes when it came to training dogs for their new company, Mad Dog Security. Quinn was sticking around, staying in town, which was no doubt why things were progressing with Jolie.
His hands fisted over the steering wheel before he hit it a few times with his palm. How could something so good could turn out so bad? It didn’t make sense.
Maybe he was stubborn and set in his ways, but he liked his job. He was good at it. And he was careful, despite Tasha’s words to the contrary.
He liked being in the field, knowing he made a difference in someone’s life, even if it meant he put his on the line to protect them and see to it that they made it home to their families. That was important.
But was it more important than Tasha and the baby they had created?
He still pondered that question when he let himself into the gated entrance of the MacGregor house. He parked outside the kennel but didn’t move, too tired and too angry to do more than glare into the night.
A light switched on inside the main house, drawing his attention. A glance in toward the kitchen sink showed Duncan there, the baby on his shoulder.
Muttering under his breath, Owen got out and shoved his hands into his pockets as he crossed the distance to the main house, the crust of ice and snow that had fallen at the higher elevation crunching under his feet.
Duncan must have seen him coming, because, by the time Owen made it to the kitchen door, it was open. He crossed the threshold but stopped in his tracks when he saw Duncan holding Bethany’s daughter, Hollyn.
Something about the sight punched him in the gut, and even though he’d seen his boss and buddy holding Hollyn the other day, visited with them, now that he knew Tasha was pregnant…
“What are you doing here?” Duncan asked, pulling a chair from the table with his foot while holding a bottle to the baby’s mouth.
The sound of Hollyn’s sucking noises landed another punch, this one even harder than the last. Was he really going to miss out on moments as precious as this because of a job? He could work for Duncan in any number of ways. Maybe as a compromise he could look into doing something else.
“Owen?” Duncan stood and nodded his head toward the chair. “Have a seat. Looks like you need it more than we do.”
In a way, he did. Legs weak, he fell onto the seat, wondering how seven pounds and eight ounces of baby could make him have such a huge change of heart.
“Take her. But if you drop her, I’ll drop you,” Duncan said, carefully handing Hollyn over with enough fuss to make Bethany proud.
Owen stared down into the tiny, sleepy eyes of his niece and felt his face get hot. Duncan would make an awesome father, but Bethany would still need her brother. This kid, her uncle.
His son or daughter, a father.
“Owen, what’s going on?” Duncan demanded. “Say something.”
“She’s right,” he answered, not taking his gaze off of the baby. A tiny hand fisted around his pinky where he held the bottle, and his heart swelled even more. “Tasha was right.”
“I take it you’re here because you two got into it,” Duncan said, moving to the fridge to grab a couple of water bottles. Duncan carried them back to the table and opened them, setting one in front of Owen.
“She’s pregnant,” he said, sharing the news since Tasha hadn’t told him he couldn’t. Besides, he figured the Besties already knew, so why not tell Duncan? “But she wants nothing to do with me because of my job.”
“Ah,” Duncan said, leaning back in the seat and stretching his long legs out in front of him, crossing his ankles. “And now you’ve had a change of heart?”
Owen lifted his head and met Duncan’s gaze. “Can you hold this little girl and not think twice before you put yourself in front of a bullet?”
A smile lifted one corner of his friend’s mouth before Duncan chuckled.
“Here’s the thing,” Duncan said, his voice low. “We’ve served our time, paid our dues. I’m not going to ask any of my employees to do something I’m not willing to do myself, but I’ve also already done it. So have you. You want out, get out. But if you want to stay in, rest assured we can work around the assignments.”
Owen looked from Duncan to Hollyn, at the sweet innocence that would only be little for a short period of time. “You need a better IT setup for tracking idiots like me who get themselves into trouble and can’t find their way out.”
“I agree,” Duncan said with a nod. “Simon’s a good hacker, but he can’t fill your shoes when it comes to leading a team, cyber or otherwise,” Duncan said. “He can’t handle the pressure and caves at the first sign of a few tears. He needs to be in a room with his computers and nowhere else, which means I need a front man to lead things. Someone I can trust to head the division.”
Owen looked at Duncan in surprise.
“I’m in the same position,” Duncan said with a shrug. “I want to spend time with my family, and that means delegating some of the responsibility of the company to others— or as Bethany puts it, I have to stop being a control freak. What do you say? You interested?”
Owen pulled the empty bottle from his niece’s lips and gently raised her to his chest. A loud burp immediately erupted from the tiny body, earning their laughter. “I think that’s a yes.”