The Best Man (Blue Heron #1)(116)

Jess was talking to the mom, telling her about transporting them to the E.R., wouldn’t hurt her to be checked out, too, because sometimes shock and adrenaline masked an injury, and was there someone she wanted to call, her husband or a friend, the usual.

Both kids seemed okay. The older one probably understood more and was therefore more shaken, but now that help was here, they were starting to realize they were the stars of the show. The ambulance had pulled up right after the engine, so Jess and Gerard took the bigger kid out and carried him to the ambulance, booster seat and all. Levi and Ned Vanderbeek did the same with the little guy, setting his car seat right on the gurney. Kelly Matthews was strapping the older boy’s seat onto the bench in the back of the ambulance, chatting away with the kid, getting him to laugh.

The mom, who’d done such a good job of keeping it together, started to cry at the sight of her boys in an ambulance, then did that horribly sweet thing moms did—tried to smile instead.

Reminded Levi of his own mom the day he left for Basic.

“Be right back,” Levi said, going to the cruiser. He kept some of those little beanbag animals in the glove compartment for just this type of call. Grabbed two and gave a pig to Cody, a lamb to the little guy. “Thanks for giving us something to do tonight,” he said.

“You’re welcome,” the little brother said happily, holding the lamb up to study it more closely.

“You take care, kids,” Levi said.

“Thank you for staying with us,” the older boy said solemnly, and Levi felt his heart squeeze a little.

“You bet, pal,” he said.

Then he turned to the other kid, Stephen, and did a double take. His gut told him before his brain caught on, tightening so fast it stole his breath.

He looked back at Cody, then back at Stephen.

“Bye!” said the little guy, turning the stuffed lamb over to investigate its belly. His forehead was...what was the word Faith used? Crinkled.

Stephen looked like...like him.

The boys were his father’s other sons.

He realized he was staring. “Uh...you take care, boys. You were really brave.”

The boys’ mother was looking at him, her mouth slightly open. Crap.

At that moment, a car screeched up, and Rob Cooper burst out of the door, running up to the back of the ambulance. “Heather! Heather, baby, are you okay? Are the boys—oh, God, hey, boys! Cody, you okay, buddy? Stevie? You doing all right?”

His father kissed the little boys, wiped his eyes and held their hands. He asked Kelly something, looked back at the older kid, ruffled his hair.

Get moving. Levi walked to the cruiser, head down. His hands buzzed with adrenaline. Almost there.

God, he wished Faith was around. Wished he could go home and pull her into his arms and breathe in that smell and have her dopey dog jump up against them.

And maybe he’d tell her he’d met his brothers today.

“Excuse me.”

Shit.

His father’s wife had followed him the few yards to the cruiser. She looked at him steadily, then held out her hand. “I’m Heather Cooper.”

She was maybe thirty-eight, forty; in other words, closer to his own age than his father’s. Levi took a breath, then shook her hand. “Nice to meet you, ma’am.”

“Thank you for helping my sons.”

“No problem. I’m glad they’re okay.” He hesitated. “They seem like great kids.”

“They are. I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.” Yeah. She knew.

He took a deep breath. “Levi Cooper.”

“I thought so.” Her eyes were wet. “And my sons...they’re your half brothers, aren’t they?”

He nodded.

She sucked in a breath. “I—I didn’t know.”

“Sorry.”

“You’re not the one who should be sorry.” She tried to smile, but it faltered. “My God.”

“Um...I should go. You take care, Mrs. Cooper,” he said.

“Heather. Since I’m your stepmother and all.” This time, the smile was a little more resolute. “This is quite a shock.”

“Heather? Babe, the ambulance is almost ready to—oh. Oh.”

Yeah. Oh. It was almost comical, the expressions running across his father’s face—anxiety, then shock, then that realization that yep, the shit had hit the fan. “Uh...hey,” he said. “How are you?”

“I guess you two have met before,” Heather bit out. “This man just saved your sons’ lives.”

“That’s slightly exaggerated,” Levi said. He looked at his father. Rob Cooper was smaller than Levi remembered. Skinnier, too. In addition to looking guilty as sin, his father looked...weak.

Because he was. Somehow, Rob Cooper had made something of himself, had found a nice woman, had been given two more sons, and he must’ve been doing something right. But he’d never once had the guts to own up to walking out on his firstborn. He’d never even told his wife he had another child.

“You two need to take care of your sons. I’m glad everyone’s okay.” He turned to his cruiser.

Then he stopped and turned back to his sorry excuse of a father and suddenly had him by the front of his shirt, lifting him off the ground. His father’s familiar eyes were suddenly wide with terror.