Practicing Parenthood by Cara Lockwood

Author:Cara Lockwood [Lockwood, Cara]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2018-01-08T16:33:28+00:00

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

COLLIN DECIDED TO take a walk. He needed to clear his head before he said something he’d really regret. He headed out the front door, hardly caring whether it closed behind him. The screen door slapped shut, and he figured that was enough to keep the bugs out.

The fact she’d keep the baby a secret from him still irked, and it might always bother him. How could she imagine that would work? A baby never knowing his father, and a father never having the opportunity to know his son. He still felt strongly that the baby would be a boy.

He went down the sandy path behind the house, the one too narrow for a golf cart, and walked until he hit the beach. Seagrass stood tall in the dunes, and the sun had already dropped below the horizon. The sky had turned from a bright pink and orange to a deep lavender. The warm breeze ruffled his hair and if he’d been less frustrated, he would’ve taken notice of the beautiful scene. He marched down the tapered path to the beach as the nearly full moon rose above the ocean.

He’d always vowed never to be an irresponsible parent, no matter what. After his father went to jail, he’d always felt his absence acutely and blamed him for not being there. He’d had to teach himself how to bat and how to throw a ball, how to ride a bicycle and how to shave. All the things dads were supposed to teach their sons. But he’d been long gone. Collin learned to do everything for himself, and that also meant being the one in control. He didn’t like feeling out of control, as if someone else held the power. He’d spent his childhood feeling helpless, and he damn sure wasn’t going to waste any of his adulthood feeling that way.

Then, of course, he thought of Jimmy Reese out there somewhere. The escaped convict made him feel more than a little helpless. He pulled up his text messages. No new ones from Jenny. No news.

They’ll catch him before he gets anywhere close to North Captiva, he told himself. They had to. He was probably just lying low. But when he surfaced, he’d be caught. He wouldn’t be the first escaped criminal to threaten lawyers but then get arrested in the bedroom of his girlfriend’s house. Besides, Collin felt confident he could take care of himself and Madison—if the stubborn woman would let him. He kicked a bit of sand at his feet.

Collin took pride in his independence. He knew he could handle almost anything life threw at him, because in some sense, he already had. He’d been officially orphaned when his mom died, but since his mom had had to work multiple jobs while he and his sister were growing up, part of him had felt orphaned his whole life.

He sat on the beach as the moon rose in the sky. He could see the white foam of the waves rushing in, nearly hitting his toes.

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