A Fallow Heart (Tommy Creek #2)(28)

“You knew I couldn’t tell which one you were!” Branson thundered. “And you purposely kept the truth from me, teasing me.”

Chuckling under his breath, Coop nudged Lexi’s elbow. “Just imagine how they’re going to fight when they become parents.”

Both Branson and Emma stopped bickering to instantly focus on him. In unison, they answered, “We are.”

Their argument forgotten, the proud parents descended upon Coop in a flood, pulling up pictures on their cell phones to show off three-month old Brand.

Elbowing Emma Leigh aside to jostle closer to Cooper, Branson snorted. “Your shot is too blurry. This is much clearer; you can actually see his face. Look at that chin. Doesn’t he have my chin?”

It was sweet how the two new parents were so obviously satisfied with their newborn. Yet it depressed him. Em—who’d never shown any interest in boys all through school—had married a good man, then popped out a kid to be proud of, while he…well, Cooper had nothing.

It made him wonder if Jo Ellen—

He heaved that thought out of his head as soon as it sprouted. She wasn’t anything to him, just one big what if. So why did the simple thought of her married to someone else make him feel so anxious and antsy? And of course, she had to be married by now with a half-a-dozen adorable babies clinging to her knees. A woman like Jo Ellen Rawlings wouldn’t stay single for long.

Curiosity burned in his gut as Cooper licked his lips and wondered if Em would read too much into his words if he somehow managed to slip in a question about what her twin was up to these days, or if she was going to attend the reunion too?

“He’s a cute kid,” he said, glancing at Emma Leigh before shaking his head. “Geez, I can’t believe you had a baby just a few months ago.”

Sending her husband a smug grin, Em preened. “See. Cooper thinks I still look hot.”

Branson pulled her close, sending Coop a glare. Cooper shook his head and chuckled. “So where is the little tyke?”

Emma sniffed. “Do you honestly think my parents are going to let him out of their sight for a minute while we’re visiting? He’s their first and only grandbaby. As soon as we showed up, they kidnapped him and have been spoiling him rotten ever since. We’ve hardly gotten to see him.”

Their only grandkid, huh? Jo Ellen must not have a gaggle of babies then. Instantly, he winced, guilty for the relief he experienced.

“…Thank goodness we decided to come down for the whole week,” Emma Leigh rambled on. “The new grandparents probably would’ve hog-tied us and trapped us in the basement if we’d tried to make this a single-day trip. I coaxed Joey into coming down from Dallas for the entire week, too; she’s only seen Brand once since he was born.”

“Dallas?” Coop repeated, his attention whooshing into focus. “She’s living in Dallas?”

“Yep. And Caine’s in Fort Worth if you can believe that. He’s a big time photographer these days. And barely twenty-four, to boot.”

“Wow.” Cooper made the right sounds, even though his mind returned to Dallas.

She was in Dallas.

It made sense. She’d always been so polished and chic as if she had belonged in a big city from birth.

“You should really check out his website. Even for my annoying little brother, the damn boy has talent.”

Cooper nodded politely. But Dallas? How long has she been in Dallas?

“So you said you’d moved back home, huh,” Emma said, changing the subject abruptly. Scrambling to catch up with the switch in conversation, Cooper gave her plenty of time to add, “When’d you do that? And when’d you move out in the first place?”

“Uh…I bought a place straight out of college and started my own agricultural business, spraying, and fertilizing, and such. But…” He let out a soul-weighing sigh as he added the miserable part; “I sold my house and moved back to the farm about a year before we had to put Dad in a nursing home.”

“Oh my God.” Emma’s mouth dropped open as she set her hand on Cooper’s arm. “You had to put Thad in a home? He must hate that.”

Coop stared at her hand, trying to calm the panic and misery eating at him whenever he thought of his father. “When he remembers who he is, yeah, he’s raring to get out of there. But…” The words died in his throat as his voice failed him.

Jesus, he hated it when he had to explain what had become of his dad.

“Remembers who he is?” Emma repeated, shaking her head. “What do you mean? What’s wrong with him?”

Cooper swallowed down the lump in his throat. “He has Dementia.”

Pressing her hand to her mouth, Em gasped and studied Coop with enough pity to just about unravel him.

His dad had always been larger than life in his eyes. Steady, dependable, hard-working. Now, he was a shell of a man. It rattled Cooper every time he visited the nursing home.

Before he could stop himself, he spilled out the whole story. When he and his mother recognized what was happening, Coop had moved home to help with the daily chores. But as his father declined, Coop’s responsibilities doubled. Finally, he dropped his spraying business and took over his father’s job full time. Thad might’ve forgotten most everything, but he hadn’t forgotten he was a farmer. Every day, he’d tried to climb onto a tractor and start it.