And Eli Garrett knew exactly where she was and why. So if her dad called the police, he was going to find her. And he was going to be angrier. Actually, if it escalated to that point...she couldn’t trust Alex and Clara to keep her secret. That was the problem with all these sticky family connections.
“I’m pregnant,” Violet said. There was absolute silence on the other end of the phone. “And I didn’t want to tell you. Because I’m afraid of what... I’m afraid. Because I made a mistake. And I’ve never made a mistake. Not since you came and rescued me from that barn party, Dad. I did my very best to be good. To be good for you. And to not cause you any trouble. Because I know you’ve been through enough. I just didn’t want to disappoint you. I didn’t want to disappoint you again.”
“Are you okay?” he asked.
That was all he asked. If she was okay. He didn’t yell; he didn’t judge. Nothing. He didn’t scold her; he didn’t...
He just asked abouther.
And it made her heart feel bruised.
“I don’t know,” she said. “I mean, if you mean... He’s...complicated?”
“What do you need from me?”
His tone was grave and low, and it was worse than she had imagined. Because he wasn’t yelling. He wasn’t being wildly supportive or anything like that. But he was... He sounded so emotionally affected that he couldn’t even hide it. And he was still being good to her. In spite of the fact that it was clear he wasn’t pleased.
“I don’t know what I need,” she said. “That’s why I came... When Wolf suggested that I come to Four Corners with him while we sorted everything out, I thought it was a good idea. Because I can figure out... We can figure out what we’re going to do.”
“Wolf?” His dad’s tone was completely flat. “His name is Wolf.”
She closed her eyes. “I promise you, he’s a human man.”
“How many tattoos?”
“None,” she said. “This is why I don’t want to be home right now.”
“I’m sorry,” he said. “Having a hard time wrapping my head around this.”
“Violet, you can come home,” Alison said. “You’re right, you’re twenty-two. This is your situation. It is not ours. You’re not a child and...”
“She’smychild,” her dad growled.
“I’m fine,” Violet said. “I’m not in trouble. I’m not in danger. He is a good man, who has a ranch. And I am staying on it. With his family. He has a big family. He’s... He’s a Garrett,” she said.
“Is that so?” Her father’s voice sounded deadly.
“Yes. And if you ask Eli about it, he can tell you. Wolf is his cousin.”
“You can bet I’ll be having a talk with Eli.”
“Please don’t do anything silly like come find me.”
“Bo,” her dad said, his voice suddenly going hoarse. “That’s all I want to do. I just need to give you a hug. I need to... Honey, don’t you understand that I held you in my arms for the first time twenty-two years ago, and I still feel like I should be holding you? Especially now.”
Tears burned her eyes. “It’s not about you, Dad,” she said. “This. Me needing to be away. It’s not about you. It’s about me. Because I have to decide if...”
“If what?”
“Well, he wants to get married.”
She swallowed hard, and the sound of that swallow was all she could hear. Her dad had gone completely silent.
“Dad?”
“He’ll have to ask my permission first.”
She had a lot of thoughts about her dad’s insistence on that but now wasn’t the time to voice them.