Vicki was sitting completely still, looking at Margaret. It really was a lot to ask of someone who wasn’t family, but he suddenly hoped she’d say yes. It was the only way he could give this gift to his grandma.
“Um, I don’t know, Margaret.” Her eyes met his. “I mean, Mitch just spent time here, so he likely couldn’t get more time off work right away. And South Dakota really isn’t too far away, but there’s no way you could do more than a few hours in a vehicle a day. It would take us two or three days of driving just to get there.”
Mitch knew she was trying to come up with reasons to say no without hurting his grandma’s feelings.
“Well, I can do it. I’m an independent software developer so I can work whenever and wherever I need to. But if you can’t do it, I understand. Maybe we could hire someone to come with us to help with anything I can’t do.”
He knew without a doubt he was taking his grandma on this trip, even if he had to hire a private nurse to come with them.
“I would pay you, Vicki. I know you don’t ever take much time off work, so I think it might do you good to get away for a while.”
“I don’t know, Margaret. I just…can I have some time to think about it?”
He knew it was because of him she was hesitating. He suspected if Margaret had asked her before he’d come along, she’d have said yes in a heartbeat. She had a connection with his grandma that he envied.
He decided he’d just have to make sure she said yes. He knew how to pour on the charm when needed, and he knew right now, he was going to have to give it everything he had.
Because even though he desperately wanted to do this for his grandma, there was a small part of him willing to admit the thought of spending time on the road with Vicki made his heart skip a beat.
He wasn’t going to let her say no.
Chapter Four
“I don’t know. It’s just so crazy! Who would ever hop in a vehicle with a complete stranger and head off across the country on a road trip? Not to mention the fact there will be an elderly woman there who needs special care and couldn’t even do anything to help me if he turns out to be some raving lunatic mass murderer.”
Her sister Robyn raised an eyebrow as she peered at Vicki from across the table. The family had been playing Chase the Ace and now there were only a few of them left in the game—Robyn, her brother Joel, her dad, and surprisingly, her other brother Travis. Normally, he never won anything, but it seemed his luck had changed since he got married.
Since most of the new members of the Quinn family didn’t quite have the competitive streak in them yet that the siblings did, they’d left the table quietly and helped get supper prepared while the game finished. Brooke was still pouting that she’d been the first one put out of the game, but everyone else seemed to take it in their stride.
Of course, since they were playing for quarters, the pot was a nice win at the end of the game.
“I hardly think Mitchell Bailey is a mass murderer. I’m pretty sure Margaret wouldn’t be asking you to go on a road trip with a man she knew had a history of killing people.”
“But how does she even know? Seriously, the guy doesn’t even bother to visit his grandma in years, then just shows up and now we’re all supposed to trust him and think he must be a good person?”
She grinned at her dad as he tried to pass her a card she strongly suspected was an Ace, but she blocked it with her King with an exaggerated flourish.
“Hmm…well, speaking of being a good person…” Her dad huffed and pretended he was angry as he tucked his card back in front of him. He was out of quarters, so he’d be going out if he had the lowest card.
“You’re just mad at the guy because he happened to see you make a complete fool of yourself. Geez, would you rather he’d pretended not to see you and left you sprawled over top of your shopping cart while he walked past?” Robyn looked at her brothers, who all chuckled to themselves.
Vicki spun around to face her mom who’d just walked into the living room where they had the long folding table set up. “Mom! You weren’t supposed to tell anyone!”
Her mom shook her head and pretended to fight her laughter. “I know, honey. But I just couldn’t keep it to myself.”
“Did you think we wouldn’t notice the giant goose egg on your forehead?” Travis and Joel looked at each other and laughed. For grown men, they sure did still act like children a lot of the time.
“Well, I’m glad you are all enjoying yourselves at my expense. I could have been really hurt, you know.”
Everyone snickered, then pretended to nod their heads seriously. “Yes, you could have ended up like the eggs, or worse, the poor oranges.”
Her dad stood up and stretched after being put out of the game. “Children, behave yourselves.” He smiled at Vicki and patted her hand. “Don’t listen to them. I’m glad you weren’t badly hurt. They really should fix that broken cement on the sidewalk.”
Vicki resisted the urge to stick her tongue out at her siblings as Robyn dealt the next hand.
Over the chatter from everyone sitting around the room, the doorbell was barely audible. Vicki tried to think of who was missing from the family game night, and who would actually ring the doorbell, when she heard Brooke call her from the doorway.
“Vicki, there’s someone here to see you.”
She caught the smirk on her brother’s faces before she turned to see who it was. There stood Mitchell with an embarrassingly large bouquet of flowers.
Vicki knew now, without a doubt, the whole universe being out to get her thing she’d been thinking about, was true. Why was he here? And why did he have to show up with flowers, in front of her immature family who would read way too much into the gesture.
She slowly walked to the door, pretending not to notice Brooke’s grin as she met her in the hallway.
“What are you doing back in town already?” He’d gone home a few days ago, the day after Margaret had asked them about taking her on the road trip.
He put his hand out for her to take the flowers from him. They were a nice bouquet of fall flowers, filled with daisies and sunflowers which were her favorite. Warily, she took them from his hand and automatically lifted them to her nose.
“Well, I just popped in to quickly see Grandma, but this trip was to see you actually. Can I talk to you outside for a minute? Or, maybe go for a drive around the block so we can talk?”
She thought about the mass murderer discussion and looked into the living room where she immediately knew everyone was pretending not to listen.
Just then, Joel’s big golden retriever, Stanley, came bounding over to see who the new person was at the door. He’d been in the kitchen mooching any scraps that fell to the floor and had missed the arrival. He tucked himself right up beside Vicki and pushed his nose up at Mitch for him to pet him. She figured she could take Stanley outside with her to at least give the impression she’d be protected if Mitch tried anything. He couldn’t possibly know that the only real threat he might face would be getting pounced on and licked to death.
“I guess I can come outside for a few minutes. But you owe me five dollars because I’m pretty sure I was going to win this round of cards.”
She reached up and grabbed her coat, then pulled Stanley’s leash from the hook. The dog started whining with excitement knowing he was going to be invited outside too.
“I’m taking Stanley out for a little walk before supper, Joel.”
“Well, he was just outside doing his business, so it’s really not necessary, but sure, if you want to take him, I guess…”
Why couldn’t her brother just pretend along with her, instead of making her look like she was trying to find some excuse to have the dog with her?
She decided Travis was definitely her favorite brother.
The cool autumn air kissed her cheeks as soon as they stepped outside. The streetlights were starting to come on, casting a glow on the sidewalks below in the increasing darkness. Stanley tugged at the l
eash, slowly dragging her along as he sniffed at everything in his path. He’d never been good at being on a leash, preferring to run around free like he did at Joel’s.
“Do you want me to hold him, so he doesn’t end up hauling you to the ground?” Mitch reached out for the leash.
“No, I’ll hold him. I’m perfectly capable of controlling him. Besides, he might not take kindly to having a stranger holding him.” She almost laughed out loud at how ridiculous that comment sounded, knowing full well Stanley wouldn’t care at all who was holding him as long as he was being included in the adventure.
But Mitch didn’t need to know that.
He pulled his jacket up around his neck, then thrust his hands into his pockets as they let Stanley lead them down the sidewalk. She didn’t want to be caught staring at him, so she made sure only to look sideways without being obvious. He had a strong jawline and his hair was slightly messed up from the wind.
“So, why did you come back to town so soon? I assume you want to talk to me about your grandma.”
He kept his eyes on Stanley, then turned his head to her. “I do. I wanted to talk to you about the road trip she wants to take. I know it’s something that means a great deal to her, and I really want to do this for her to try making up for being gone for so long. Not that it will make everything better, but I’d like to at least try.”
“You know, your grandma has talked about you constantly, always saying what a good boy you were and how much she missed you. It was heartbreaking to see how badly she wanted to see you, but knowing you weren’t coming.”
He looked back at Stanley and pulled a hand up to thrust it through his hair. “I know. Trust me, nothing you say can make me feel any worse than I already do. And I understand why you don’t like me. But if you could at least consider doing this for her, it would mean a lot. I know you won’t let her pay you, but I hope you’ll let me. I will pay you double what you would be making if you were working, to make up for you taking the time off work to do this.”
She stopped walking and turned to face him, letting Stanley sniff around in the hedge along the sidewalk. “First of all, I never said I don’t like you. I don’t really know you, so that wouldn’t be fair. And it isn’t my place to judge what goes on in someone’s family. But, it is difficult for me to understand how anyone could abandon their grandmother who l know loves them as much as Margaret does you.”
He looked past her shoulder and clenched his jaw, then shrugged as his eyes came back to her. “Things just happened. I don’t expect you to understand it all. What I’m asking is for you to do this for my grandma. Not for me. I’ve thought about it a lot since I left the other night and it’s important to me that I do this for her. But she won’t go without you there to help her. We both know in her condition she needs the special care only a nurse can give, and you’re the only one she’s willing to trust.”
The darkness of the evening settled around them as they stood under a light on the quiet street. Stanley must have realized they weren’t going anywhere for a few minutes and had plunked himself down on the grass behind her to catch a nap.
“I know going off on a road trip with someone you don’t even know is asking a lot, but I promise you I’ll be on my best behavior and will even provide you with a police report and criminal record check.” When he smiled, her heart fluttered, and she had to fight against rolling her eyes at herself.
How could she be so easily swayed by a good-looking face with an amazing smile?
“How many days do you think I should ask to have off?”
His face lit up and reached out to take her hands, making her tug on Stanley’s leash. The big dog jumped up, lumbered over and sat beside her to see what all the fuss was about. Her breath caught as the heat of Mitch’s skin on hers sent warmth through her entire body.
“Thank you. I promise I’ll pay you well for your time.”
She pulled her hands from his and turned to walk back toward the house. Her cheeks burned at the intimacy they’d just shared, and she didn’t want to admit how deeply she’d been affected.
Was it really a good idea to spend days alone with this man? Well, she reasoned with herself, Margaret would be there too. It was nothing more than a job, and she was doing it for the woman she’d grown to love.
It had nothing at all to do with the fact she secretly thought she just might enjoy getting to know Mitch a little better, even if she still wasn’t sure if she was more annoyed or attracted to him.
Nothing at all.
Chapter Five
“Vicki, I’m so glad I made it here before you left. Were you just going to go off on a trip without even coming to say goodbye to your poor old grandmother?”
Mitch carried Vicki’s bag over to the vehicle he’d rented for the trip. He didn’t think his Jeep would be comfortable for his grandma for a long ride, so he’d swallowed his manly pride and chosen a minivan to make it easier for her to get in and out of.
“Grams, I called you last night and talked for an hour. I didn’t think you needed an in-person goodbye too. Besides, I’m only going to be gone for about a week.”
He leaned against the van and smiled as Vicki embraced the woman who’d shown up just outside her apartment as they were getting ready to leave. They would to head to the nursing home to get his grandma from here.
The white-haired woman now turned to look him up and down. For some reason, he found himself standing up straight and his hand going up to fix his hair.
“So, you must be Margaret’s grandson, Mitchell. I’ve heard her mention you many times. And of course I’ve heard your name spoken a few times now since we found out Vicki was heading off on the road with you.”
He reached out and shook her hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. And, I know you have to be the infamous Grandma Gertie I’ve heard Vicki mention a few times.”
The night they’d been out at supper, one of Vicki’s cousins had come over to the table to say hello. The subject had somehow turned to the fact that Vicki was now the only unattached child in the family, and how Grandma Gertie would be able to focus her full attention on her. Mitch had been quite amused to hear them talk about the woman who quite obviously was still very involved in the lives of everyone in her family.
“Yes, I’m the poor grandma she thought she could sneak away from without saying goodbye.”
“Grams! Seriously, I wasn’t trying to sneak away. I honestly didn’t think I needed to make a big fuss. It’s not like I’m going to Europe backpacking for six months with no way of contacting anyone.”
He laughed as he noticed the twinkle of laughter in the older woman’s eyes when she teased her granddaughter.
“Now, I’ve packed you some sandwiches and a loaf of my banana bread I know you love. I’ve also put some cookies into a container inside the bag. Make sure you share it all with Margaret and the young man here.”
Gertie handed a large insulated bag to him so he could put it into the van with the rest of their things.
“Grams, you didn’t need to do that. We can get food along the way.”
Grandma Gertie looked mortified at the suggestion. “Do you know how much that will cost, to be eating out so much?”
Mitch stood back and watched the interaction between the women. Even though Gertie was quite a bit older, he could see the family resemblance with Vicki.
He let his eyes stay on Vicki as she talked with her grandma, grateful for the chance to just look at her without being caught. Even today, when she’d opened the door to greet him with her hair pulled up into a messy bun on top of her head and wearing a simple sweater and pair of blue jeans, his breath had been taken away at how beautiful she was.
He couldn’t figure out why he was so fascinated with this woman. He’d dated many women, and truthfully had spent time with some of the most intriguing and wealthiest ladies in the entire Midwest. But something about this simple girl from this small town had him completely enthralled.
It didn’t make sens
e to him, and it did scare him. Because he knew without a doubt there would never be a chance for anything between them—he wouldn’t allow it to happen. So, why couldn’t he stop thinking about her?
“Hey, Vicki. I was hoping we’d catch you before you left.”
Mitch now turned to see Vicki’s two sisters walking out the back door of the clinic she lived above. He’d briefly met them when they’d walked back to the house the other night, but he’d been introduced so quickly to everyone in the family, he wasn’t sure if he remembered which one was which. They’d invited him to stay for supper, but he didn’t want to push his luck once she’d agreed to go on the trip with him, so he’d politely declined.
Vicki looked up to the sky and rolled her eyes. “Are you kidding me, you guys? We’re supposed to pick Margaret up by nine and with my entire family showing up to see me off, we’ll be lucky if we make it there today at all.” She turned toward him and pointed at the tallest woman. “Mitch, you remember my sister, Brooke. And this is Robyn. They both work in the clinic here, and obviously don’t have anything better to be doing right now.”
Robyn shook his hand again and shrugged. “Is it so wrong for sisters to be concerned and want to make sure the man she’s heading off across the country with is trustworthy?”
He laughed at the woman’s honesty. “No, there’s nothing wrong with it at all. I assure you, I’ll be a perfect gentleman and will be sure to look after her until I can return her safely back to you.”
“You guys can’t be serious? What, Joel and Travis couldn’t get here to make their presence known too? Or Mom and Dad?”
“Well, Joel wanted to come but he was doing surgery on a dog this morning, and Travis had an early morning appointment. Mom and Dad could still show up, though.” Brooke grinned at her sister, obviously enjoying how uncomfortable they were making Vicki.
Being an only child, from what could only be described as a completely broken home, Mitch was envious of the genuine concern and love being shown by the family in front of him. He knew without a doubt they’d all shown up to make sure he knew they were holding him responsible if anything happened to Vicki. And they wanted to make sure he’d be trustworthy before he drove away with someone they cared about.
Healing Hearts: Quinn Valley Ranch Book 27 Page 3