Star-Spangled Secret Read online

  Copyright © 2019, Caroline Lee

  [email protected]

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author.

  First edition: 2019

  This work is made available in e-book format by Amazon Kindle at www.amazon.com

  Printing/manufacturing information for this book may be found on the last page

  Cover: EDHGraphics

  Fireworks and tempers are both hot this Fourth of July! Celebrate with this sweet second-chance, small-town romance about a veteran with a son he didn’t know existed!

  It’s no secret that Tripp Weston used to be a bad boy. Back before he left home without a forwarding address, back before he joined the Army and got straightened out, he was known for his short fuse and explosive temper. Alyssa McIver was the only person who’d ever kept him calm, and she was far too good for him anyhow…

  When Tripp left town so suddenly seven years ago, Alyssa was left with a secret of her own. Now little Jeremiah has his father’s anger-management issues, and between his tantrums and her job, Alyssa is worn out. Her sister claims everything is better with a partner, but Alyssa has only ever loved one man.

  But now Tripp is back in Quinn Valley, and nothing is as he expected. The homecoming he’d dreamed of has been shattered, the woman he was sure he’d lost is staring up at him with hope…and there’s a little boy with Tripp’s eyes and Alyssa’s smile who needs someone to guide him. Tripp’s hard-learned control is just what the Jer needs, and he yearns to share those lessons with this secret son of his.

  With Jeremiah’s birthday approaching, can Tripp convince Alyssa he’s worth trusting again? Or will her protectiveness of their son keep the three of them apart?

  This Independence Day, sparks will fly in Quinn Valley!

  Contents

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  EPILOGUE

  Other works by Caroline Lee

  River’s End Ranch and Quinn Valley Ranch:

  Or if you prefer historical romance, check out these bestsellers:

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  Star-Spangled Secret

  Quinn Valley Ranch

  Book Twenty

  Dedication:

  This one (finally) is for Alyssa. She saves my butt when it comes to continuity, research and generally difficult-to-wrangle characters. But she’s also a support to nursing mothers, an incredible mother herself, and an inspiration as a woman. Thanks for everything you do, Alyssa!

  CHAPTER ONE

  “Happy birthday to yoooouuuuu!”

  As the rest of their family finished singing, Alyssa looked over and smirked at her twin brother. In their family, there was a tradition of attacking the birthday boy or girl with silly string. But not this year…

  “Well Little Sis, shall we?” Dusty asked her, completely unaware.

  “Hey, that’s ‘Big Sis’ to you!”

  “No way, I’m older.”

  It was an old argument, but they both turned to their mother at the same time. “Mom?”

  Their mother just shook her head. “I can’t recall which one of you was born first.”

  Dusty rolled his eyes. “You can’t expect us to believe that?”

  Mom just nodded. “Oh yes, birthing can be very hectic. Right, Alyssa?”

  Alyssa had been a doula for years and had been a part of hundreds of births. Even so, she couldn’t imagine one so disorganized, as to confuse which twin was older. So she appealed to their father. “Dad? I’m older, right?”

  Dad shook his head, his expression carved from granite. “Very hectic, as your mother said. Lots of blood and screaming. So, naturally I was handing out cigars in the waiting room.”

  Chuckling, Mom slapped his arm. “That’s not true, Randall! You were with me.”

  “Hey,” cut in Katie, Alyssa’s older sister. “If you guys don’t blow out these candles soon, we’re going to have to call the fire department!”

  Their ongoing argument forgotten, the twins turned back to their cakes. Alyssa grinned, ready for the prank she was about to pull.

  Dusty nodded to her. “Ready?” he asked again.

  Alyssa put her arm around his shoulders, and smiled. “On the count of three?”

  “Just like always!”

  Together, the twins leaned over their cakes, took deep breaths, and blew out the candles. Dusty’s cake, a round chocolate one with chocolate icing, had a candle shaped like the number two. Alyssa’s cake, strawberry with vanilla icing, had a candle shaped like the number eight.

  Twenty-eight years old. Is this the year I get my act together?

  Considering what she was about to do, Alyssa seriously doubted that.

  Her brother tried to straighten, but Alyssa sent a smirk towards their mother. Mom was the practical joker in this family, so Alyssa had learned from the best.

  Throwing her weight behind her shoulder, she forced Dusty forward again. Surprised and out of balance, her twin brother went right where she wanted him to go.

  Face-first into his chocolate icing.

  He came up sputtering, covered in sugary confection, as the rest of the family burst into laughter.

  “Hey! What happened to the silly string?”

  Alyssa was chortling too hard to answer.

  Dusty reached for her, growling, “You’re in for it now!”

  Screeching with fear and laughter, she ducked out of his reach, and rushed around the kitchen to take refuge behind her father. Dad just stood there, his arms folded and a stoic expression on his face, putting up with their shenanigans, as always.

  But it was Alyssa’s son who saved her. Jeremiah stepped in front of his uncle Dusty, and smiled. It was such an unusual sight, Dusty stopped short.

  “May I try some of your chocolate, Uncle Dusty?”

  Behind his face mask of icing, Dusty’s eyes widened in surprise, before he crouched down. “Sure, buddy. Taste away.”

  He probably hadn’t expected the almost six-year-old to reach out and lick his cheek, but that’s what Jeremiah did.

  The family burst into laughter again, and for a split second, Alyssa was terrified her son would misunderstand. But when he grinned at Dusty, then at his nana, Alyssa knew he’d done it on purpose.

  Meanwhile, Dusty was laughing too hard to hold a grudge.

  “Here, buddy.” He pointed to his other cheek. “Think you could clean up this side too?”

  After Jeremiah had obliged, he had so much chocolate icing on his face, he matched Dusty.

  “Alright kids,” Mom called as she clapped her hands together. You two gentlemen go get washed up, and we’ll start divvying up pieces.”

  “I want the piece without Dusty’s germs on it,” stated Alyssa’s big brother Andrew blandly.

  Rachel, Andrew’s wife, who was getting quite round from pregnancy, nudged him. “You don’t think Dusty germs would be yummy?”

  “I do!” quipped Katie. “Dusty and Jerm are two of my
favorite McIvers!”

  Chuckling at her older sister’s nickname for her son, Alyssa took Jeremiah’s hand and led him towards the bathroom they shared at the back of her parents’ sprawling ranch house.

  This wasn’t the house they’d grown up in; that one was closer to McIver Mountain, where Dad’s family had lived for generations. But Katie and the twins were significantly younger than Andrew and Heather, so when the two oldest had moved out, their mom and dad moved closer to the town of Quinn Valley, where their mom’s extended family lived. Since then, Katie and Dusty had moved out and moved on with their lives.

  But not Alyssa. She was still stuck there.

  Jeremiah climbed up on the stool, and she grabbed a washcloth to clean his face.

  “Did you do that on purpose? Did you know your uncle wouldn’t be angry anymore if you licked him?”

  “Some people get angry if you lick them,” Jeremiah said in that serious tone of his.

  “That’s true,” she agreed as she wiped. “Licking people is usually a really bad idea. But your uncle Dusty has a weird sense of humor.”

  “I thought this was more fun than the silly string.”

  She tousled his hair. “I’m surprised you think that, since you got to bombard Aunt Katie with the silly string a few months ago!”

  Nodding, the boy studied his face in the mirror for any lingering hints of chocolate. “I surprised her too. I’m just glad I don’t have to worry about this for my birthday.”

  “That’s right! Only a few more weeks!”

  “Everybody sings to me and Grandma, but I won’t let them attack me.”

  Alyssa’s throat tightened at the simplicity of his statement. She wrapped her arms around him. “No, buddy, I won’t let anybody attack you either.”

  Jeremiah’s birthday was on the Fourth of July, and her grandma Gertie’s birthday was a few weeks later. So since the extended Quinn family always got together for the holiday, their birthday celebrations were usually included in the festivities. Since there was no way anyone would spray Grandma, that meant no one got him with silly string either.

  “I love you, Jer,” she whispered against his hair.

  “Mom!” he whined. “I want some cake!”

  “Alright.” She released him and swatted at his backside. “It’s my birthday, so let’s go get some cake!”

  And everything was fine, that is, until they returned to the kitchen, and her mom tried to hand Jeremiah a plate with a slice of Alyssa’s strawberry cake on it.

  “No! I want the chocolate!”

  Alyssa crouched down to speak to him calmly. “Sorry, buddy, but I think Uncle Dusty’s cake might be ruined. I know Nana wanted to give you a nice clean piece.”

  “No!” Jeremiah screamed as he stomped his foot. “I don’t want pink! I want chocolate! I want that one!”

  Alyssa closed her eyes with a wince. She should have anticipated this. If only she hadn’t been so stupid as to pull that trick on Dusty, this wouldn’t be an issue now. It was her own fault.

  “I’m sorry, Jeremiah,” she began as calmly as she could, trying to prevent herself from getting anxious in her guilt. “But you just have to—”

  “Chocolate!” The boy screamed again, then began stomping his feet wildly. “I want the chocolate!” Mid-tantrum, he slammed one hand into the side of Alyssa’s head.

  “Alright, mister, that’s it,” she growled, scooping the flailing boy up in her arms. “Let’s go.”

  Well aware her family was watching, and also aware they’d seen Jeremiah’s breakdowns and uncontrollable anger before, Alyssa marched him over to the refrigerator, where their behavioral modification chart was hung. She plopped him down in front of it and pointed to various suggested activities.

  “What do we do when we’re angry, Jer? Do you need to take time away? Do you need a drink of water?”

  “Chocolate!” her sweet little son screamed angrily into her face.

  Alyssa tried to keep the tears from her eyes when she answered him calmly. “That’s not an option right now, honey. What can we do to calm you down?”

  She hated seeing her baby this way. His father had always been so angry, and she wasn’t sure if this was inherited, or a different behavioral issue all together. All she knew was that she couldn’t handle this anymore.

  “I want chocolate!” the boy screamed again, stomping his foot

  “Oh, just let him have chocolate, Alyssa.”

  Mom’s voice, coming from behind her, had Alyssa turning. Half of her family had already taken their cake and moved into the living room to enjoy it. Mom was looking exasperated, as she often did with Jeremiah’s tantrums, and was holding out a plate with a piece of mutilated chocolate cake on it.

  When Alyssa met her eyes, Mom wiggled the plate in offering. “Dusty is eating the chocolate cake, so Jeremiah might as well.”

  Alyssa couldn’t decide if she would rather scream or cry herself. No! The whole point of the behavioral chart, the whole point of all the research she’d done, was that Jeremiah had to learn to deal with his anger and accept alternatives. If Mom went around giving in every time he threw a tantrum, he would turn into a spoiled brat!

  But over Mom’s shoulder, Alyssa met Katie’s eyes. She could see from her sister’s apologetic smile at least one McIver understood.

  No, Katie wasn’t a McIver anymore. She’s been a Weston since her Easter marriage to Kenneth Weston, and that was one of the things preying on Alyssa’s mind as well.

  She sighed, then gave in to her mother’s urging. Sure, Mom liked to spoil Jeremiah, but maybe in the middle of her own birthday party wasn’t when Alyssa should put her foot down.

  She took her piece of cake and sat beside her son at the kitchen table. Now that he’d gotten his way, he’d quickly calmed down and was happily stuffing his face. When he finished, he jumped up—without clearing his plate—and ran into the living room. Alyssa knew she should follow him just to keep him out of trouble, but suddenly, she just didn’t have the energy.

  She was staring down at her strawberry cake, when Katie slid into the chair next to her.

  “Are you going to eat that?” she asked, nodding down at the cake.

  Of all of Mom’s confections, it was one of Alyssa’s favorites, but she just couldn’t make herself taste it.

  “Nah. You can have it.” Alyssa pushed the plate towards her older sister, who promptly pushed it right back.

  “No way! I’d probably throw it back up.” Katie gently patted her belly. “I’m impressed I’m even sitting here talking about it.”

  Alyssa smiled, despite her funk. “How are you feeling? Are you really that nauseated? Do you want any suggestions or links to websites with information that might help?” There was a particular brand of crackers she always recommended to newly pregnant mamas, who were in their first trimester and were dealing with morning sickness, and she’d found certain essential oils have often helped some as well.

  But Katie waved her hand dismissively. “I’m only miserable in the morning.”

  “Well, only a few more weeks to go,” Alyssa said with a smile.

  Truthfully, she was just a little bit jealous of Katie’s pregnancy. Her sister was married to a man who thought she hung the moon and stars, and it was adorable the way Kenneth pampered her.

  When Alyssa had been pregnant, she’d been terrified. She’d felt so alone, and hadn’t known how to tell her family about what had happened. She’d gone through morning sickness, and stretch marks, and back pains, and nesting instincts all alone.

  The memory of that loneliness is what had driven her to become a doula. She didn’t want any laboring mother to feel alone, and she took her job very seriously.

  “So...? You want to talk about it? Whatever’s got you so down?”

  Trust Katie to know her pretty well. Alyssa snorted. “Not really.”

  Katie leaned over and bumped her shoulder. “It’ll make you feel better.”

  Alyssa exhaled. “Thanks for paying for Jer
emiah’s school. You really didn’t have to do that, and I’ll find a way to pay you back—”

  “You absolutely will not,” Katie interrupted forcefully. “You know I love Jerm, and I want what’s best for him just as much as you do. If you think Saint Agnes will help him, then making sure he can go there is the least I can do.”

  Last spring, Jeremiah’s anger issues had gotten out of control. His preschool no longer seemed able to help him, and Quinn Valley Elementary didn’t sound as if it were going to be any better. Alyssa had started researching and discovered the local Catholic School’s integrated program would be perfect for her soon-to-be kindergartner. But at ten-thousand dollars a year, there was no way she could afford to send Jeremiah there.

  And then her older sister had married a billionaire.

  Alyssa hadn’t realized Katie’s plans until after her sister had already signed Jeremiah up for the school and paid the first year’s tuition. She didn’t like the idea of Katie and Kenneth paying for twelve years’ worth of education, but Alyssa didn’t see an alternative.

  Besides, they were Jeremiah’s aunt and uncle. On both sides, even if they didn’t know it.

  Without really meaning to, Alyssa sighed again.

  And Katie, being her big sister, understood. “I really don’t think Mom meant to undermine you. I think she just wanted everything to go alright.”

  “I know that.” Finally, Alyssa reached for the cake and the fork. “I mean, logically I know that. It’s a birthday party, and she just wanted everybody to be happy.”

  “And you know we all love Jerm, right? But I also know that you know sometimes it’s just easier to give in.”

  Alyssa took a bite of the cake, but it tasted like ash. She made herself chew and swallow, before nodding. “I do know that. It’d be a heck of a lot easier to just give in all the time and stop his tantrums.”