Teaser: Mountain Husband (Mountain Men of High Ridge)

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DAVIE OVERLAND

“His name was Mac,” my sister says from the other side of the glass in Gumbrush County Women’s Penitentiary.

“That’s it? No last name?” I drop my phone on my lap. Forget about taking notes of the details Jessica remembers from the night she got pregnant with my nephew, Jesse. All she remembers is a freaking name.

“Sorry.” She shrugs. Her orange jumpsuit wrinkles at the shoulders, and I hate that our lives have come to this.

My little sister was charged for driving under the influence and stuck behind bars for the next two years, thanks to her prior arrests.

Then, there’s me.

The responsible older sister who tried to keep her on the straight and narrow, failed, and is now responsible for raising her eight month old baby.

If I can find this mysterious man in High Ridge that Jessica claims is the biological father.

Not her on-again/off-again ex-boyfriend, Cody, who makes me uncomfortable every time I see him.

Which, unfortunately, has been a lot lately, since Jessica got locked up. Despite the fact that she and Jesse have been living with me, making me the natural choice as my nephew’s guardian, Cody and his mom have been causing trouble.

Protesting my custody.

For the welfare checks, according to Jessica.

That’s why she finally admitted that Cody may not be Jesse’s real dad. She slept with one other guy around the time she got pregnant. Some stranger at a High Ridge bar after she stopped there on the drive home from visiting a friend out of town.

Now I have to find Mac, convince him that taking a court-mandated paternity test won’t ruin his life because I’m willing to care for Jesse, and then pray this man isn’t worse than Cody.

The judge granted me temporary custody of my nephew to allow for the paternity tests to be taken. Otherwise, Jesse would probably already be in Cody’s possession.

We drew the short straw when it came to judges because ours has a bias against single women raising kids and almost always sides with the bio parents, especially dads.

But I can’t let Jesse go to Cody and his mom. They’ve barely been in his life, and Cody is just as mixed up in drugs as my sister.

Based on what I’ve heard from Jessica and seen for myself on the court steps, his mom isn’t much better.

“Okay, Mac from High Ridge. You met at a bar some time last year in May. Great…” This feels like trying to find a needle in a haystack. “Wish me luck!”

A wary smile trembles to the forefront before I wave goodbye and start the awkward process of backtracking through prison security. My best friend is babysitting Jesse for me, so that's where I head, mentally preparing myself for our trip tomorrow.

Seven hours of driving.

Seven hours of agonizing over what awaits us in High Ridge, Washington.

Will we find Jesse's bio dad?

I don't have much of a plan outside of asking around town if anyone knows a Mac, and that's flimsy as fuck.

He could have been passing through, just like my sister, but I've got to try.

For Jesse.

He deserves a chance with a loving and stable father. Barring that, I'll settle for a man who will happily agree to give me custody.

A billboard for the pediatric hospital passes overhead.

We're here for your family.

A smiling baby looks over his mom’s shoulder on the giant advertisement, and it hits me that the cheesy line could be my motto.

Because I'm the one who is always there for my family.

Our dad disappeared when I was four, and Jessica was a newborn, and our mom is distant most of the time. Except when she needs a daughter to show off, and I'm the one she calls.

Hell, I practically raised Jessica.

A self-deprecating snort bursts free. “Look how well that turned out,” I mutter.

Jessica is a mess.

A convicted felon.

An addict.

No wonder that judge is hesitant about me raising Jesse.

The pessimistic thought does nothing for the nerves forming a sickly black pit in my stomach. It only adds to the pressure for tomorrow's trip to be a success.

I can't afford to fail my nephew like I did my sister.

I have to find this Mac.

He's my only hope.

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