Adopted Son

by Warren, Linda

  She touched one photo of Tuck and Eli with two little boys. Tuck appeared to be about ten or eleven, the boys about four. Eli was older and stood in the back. Tuck held the boys’ hands, smiling, as if to let them know they were welcomed.

  Staring at the photos, she sensed all the sacrifice and love that had been given selflessly to kids in need. For the first time she fully understood Tuck’s desire to give back a small portion of what all these kids had been given.

  And her love for him grew that much more.

  TUCK BUTTONED HIS JEANS as he hurried into the kitchen.

  “Hey, Tuck,” Eli said as he spotted him. “We’re out of milk. Mind if I borrow some?”

  “No. No problem.” He ran a hand through his damp hair.

  Eli opened the refrigerator. “What’s Grace’s car doing here?”

  Tuck took a breath. Once he said the words he couldn’t take them back. “She spent the night.”

  Eli grabbed the milk and closed the refrigerator. “Here? Oh, she’s hiding from her parents and she didn’t want to bother us?”

  “Not that I’m aware of.”

  Eli frowned at him. “If her car’s broken down, I can take a look at it.”

  “Her car is fine.”

  “Then…”

  Grace sashayed into the room in one of his old T-shirts, her hair damp, hanging down her back, and Sam held tightly in her arms. “Good morning, Eli.”

  Eli looked from Grace to Tuck. “What’s going on here?”

  Tuck took his brother’s arm and led him toward the back door. “If I have to tell you that, then you need to go home and get reacquainted with Caroline.”

  Grace burst out laughing as the door closed. “Did you see his face?”

  “He’s in shock,” Tuck said, smiling.

  They stared at each other and both sobered. “Are you okay?” he asked softly.

  “I’m wonderful,” she replied.

  “Good.” He kissed her cheek on the way to the refrigerator. “Hungry? I make a mean batch of scrambled eggs.”

  “Ravenous.”

  “You can put Sam down or he’s going to forget he has legs.”

  “He’s such a sweetie,” she said, placing Sam on the floor.

  Tuck opened a can of dog food and dumped it into a bowl. “Here.” He took the bowl to the utility room and Sam scurried after him.

  Grace placed her hands on her hips. “I’m devastated.”

  “Sam’s fickle. Food is his number one love.”

  “But he’s so sweet.”

  Tuck eyed her from the doorway. “That shirt looks better on you than it does on me. I’m trying very hard not to get sidetracked.” He looped his arm through hers. “Come. You can help me with breakfast.”

  Together, they made breakfast, laughing and joking. Grace sat at the table, munching on toast. “I saw all the photos in the bedroom.”

  “When I had the bedroom redone, I didn’t have the heart to take them down.”

  “There’s a lot of history in this house. I love that bed.”

  He took a swallow of coffee. “It belonged to Ma’s grandmother.”

  She ran her finger over a name on the table. “Do you think your mother might have been one of the girls who stayed here as a child?”

  “Pa was a Texas Ranger and he did a thorough investigation at the time. He said every lead was a dead end and I was a gift from God. I was meant to be their son.”

  “But you still wonder?”

  He ran both hands through his hair. “The older I get, the more I think about it. Who was she? What had driven her to give me away? My parents were the best, but I’d still like to know those answers to fill the empty place in my heart and in my mind.”

  Tuck had never said those words to anyone, not even Eli. Yet it felt so easy to tell her.

  She slipped onto his lap, wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head on his shoulder. “You do realize it doesn’t matter to anyone, especially me.”

  Their lips met in an explosive kiss and it took a moment for them to realize someone’s cell phone was buzzing.

  “It’s not mine,” Tuck said raggedly.

  Grace ran her finger down his straight nose. “That means it can only be one person.”

  “Caroline,” they said in unison and laughed, knowing Eli had had enough time to inform his wife where her sister was.

  Grace hopped off his lap, grabbed her purse and fished out her phone.

  “Grace, it’s Dad.” Suddenly her world came roaring back and she wanted to close the phone, breaking the connection. But she had to deal with her past before she could have a future.

  “Yes, Dad, what is it?” she asked, sitting in a chair, her eyes on Tuck and his concerned face.

  “Could you please meet your mother and me for lunch?”

  “Why?”

  “I would like to talk. No pressure.”

  “We did that yesterday.”

  “This is different. Things have changed and I’d rather talk to you in person than on the phone. Is one o’clock okay?”

  She took a deep breath. “Okay.” He gave her the name of the restaurant and she clicked off.

  “Your father wants to see you?” Tuck asked, watching her.

  “Yes.”

  “You seem upset.”

  “I don’t understand what has changed in a day.”

  Tuck carried dishes to the sink. “He wants you back at the helm of the Whitten Law Firm.”

  She placed her phone on the table. “I know.”

  “So you have to decide what you want.”

  “I know.” Her eyes caught his and she was as honest as she knew how to be. “I don’t want to lose what’s happening between us.”

  “You won’t. Just be honest with yourself and with me. You’ve put a lot of time and effort into the success of the Whitten Firm. That’ll be hard to walk away from, but you’ll know in your heart if it’s right. It won’t change a thing between us.”

  She was reassured and buffered by his words. He respected her as a businesswoman and whatever decision she made wouldn’t affect their relationship. That was good. They would build on the emotions they’d discovered last night and soon she’d be able to tell him that she loved him.

  “I’d better go to my apartment and change.” She hurried to the bedroom, made the bed and dressed, then stared at all the photos. Her hand touched the photo of Tuck, Eli and the two boys. She would love to have a child with that face and those big brown eyes. For the first time she realized just how much she wanted that. She also realized that she was the marrying kind. Was Tuck? Caroline had said that he wasn’t, and he had admitted as much. But could love change his mind?

  With a deep sigh, she walked out of the room.

  TUCK WATCHED HER drive away with a lump in his throat. For a brief moment in time they had connected, but now he wasn’t sure what was going to happen. They’d made no promises or vows and that’s the way he had always liked his relationships with women. Grace was different, though. He could dance with her for the rest of his life.

  He went back into the house and it seemed empty without her. He walked down the hall to his bedroom. On the top of his neatly made bed lay his T-shirt, folded perfectly—in typical Grace style. His heart constricted and he eased onto the bed staring at the wall of photos.

  He didn’t remember half the kids on the wall. Maybe he should have taken them down when Ma had passed on. But he hadn’t. Now he wondered why. Why was he clinging to the past? He took a long breath. Maybe he’d kept them as a reminder, especially when someone like Grace touched him and filled his heart with dreams other than his own.

  He buried his face in his hands, his elbows on his knees. Every time he made love to her he wanted to say those magical words, to believe they could have a life, a family. What was the right decision?

  His parents, the kids on the wall and Grace battled inside him.

  The man in him recognized that his motives were changing.

  He’d alw
ays been very sure about his goals, even breaking up with two women who saw life differently than he had. How would Grace react if he asked her to share his dream? He didn’t know, but he felt an ache in his chest at the thought of letting her go.

  He stood. Maybe it was time to let go of the dream, or just postpone it. Could he do that? Could he do that for Grace?

  Again, he wasn’t sure, but he was willing to give it time. Time to make sense of everything he was feeling.

  Time to find out what love was all about.

  GRACE WALKED into the restaurant five minutes early, but her parents were already there. A maître d’ showed her to their table and her parents stood.

  Joanna hugged her. “Darling, you look wonderful. I love that suit.”

  “Thanks, Mom.”

  She hugged her father briefly and sat down.

  Stephen stared at her. “I wish you wouldn’t be so angry.”

  She placed her napkin in her lap. “I wish you wouldn’t treat me like a child.”

  “Darling, please listen,” Joanna begged, and Grace relaxed at the entreaty in her mother’s voice.

  “I don’t understand what’s happened since yesterday. My decision is still the same.”

  “A lot has changed,” Stephen said. “I…” He was interrupted by a waiter. “We’ve already ordered. What would you like?” Her father looked at her.

  She handed the waiter the menu. “I had a late breakfast. I’ll just have a house salad and tea please.”

  The waiter nodded and walked away.

  “Your mother and I had a long talk last night.” By his tone, Grace suspected the discussion wasn’t to his liking. “We’ve decided we don’t need Cavanaugh’s money. We trust the voters.” Grace knew that was the last thing he wanted to do, but evidently her mother’s opinion had won out. “If I win, I’ll retire after another term. If I lose, I’ll retire sooner. Your mother and I plan to become more involved in our girls’ and grandson’s lives.”

  She folded her hands in her lap. “So you’re not hiring Mann?”

  He moved restlessly. “That wasn’t ever my decision.” He coughed. “I’m sorry I sprang Mann on you like that. I was desperate and afraid of losing everything I’d worked for. Desperate men do desperate acts.”

  “Thank you, Dad. I appreciate the apology.”

  The waiter brought the food and the conversation stopped. She noticed her father was eating grilled salmon where normally he would order steak. Since his heart attack, Joanna was on him constantly about his diet. Seems her mother was winning the game these days.

  As she poured dressing over her salad, Grace wondered what this meeting was really about. Was it just to apologize or did her father have something else up his sleeve?

  They talked about family and Joanna gushed on about Jesse. Finally, Stephen wiped his mouth and laid his napkin on the table.

  “I apologize for interfering in the firm. I was so out of line and I really realized that when your mother reminded me that Mann would be working with you, near you. I suddenly had a clearer picture of the situation. My career is not worth one hair on your head being harmed.”

  “Thank you, Dad.” Tears welled in her eyes at this revelation.

  “You’ve done an astounding job and I hope you’ll reconsider and come back to your law firm, because it is yours and not mine anymore. Sometimes I tend to forget that.”

  Yesterday she would have jumped at this sincere apology, but today was different. She’d spent the night in the arms of a man she loved and she was unsure if she wanted to spend the rest of her life in a job that didn’t make her happy. She didn’t need to prove anything to her father anymore. She didn’t need his approval.

  Grace was smart enough to know she still had stars in her eyes, so she knew it was best to take it slow—to make the right decision for her. She’d devoted ten years of her life to the firm, building it, promoting it and making it the best. Maybe she wasn’t ready to walk away. People depended on her.

  She dabbed at her mouth and clutched her napkin in her lap. “I do have some conditions.”

  “Conditions!” Stephen’s eyebrows jerked up in disapproval. Normally she would instantly backtrack, anything to remove that look from her dad’s face. Today she stared straight back at him, unrelenting and unflinching.

  “What are they, darling?” Joanna asked, very smoothly.

  Grace held up one finger. “Number one—we’re not hiring Mann. I think we’re clear on that now. Number two—the day care stays. Number three—you will stay out of the firm completely and not use it for political gain. Number four—do not call Byron behind my back. Number five—I will not be spending fourteen hours a day at the office.”

  “That’s your decision, but you love that firm and you love being a lawyer. It’s been your dream since you were a little girl.”

  “That’s just it. I’m not a little girl anymore. I’m a woman and I’ve had very little time to explore that part of my nature.”

  “Of course, darling, we understand.” Her mother touched her arm. “And you don’t have to explain this to your father or me.”

  “I just want you to be happy,” Stephen said.

  Grace stood. “Thank you.”

  Joanna jumped up and tucked Grace’s hair behind her ear, just as she had when Grace was a child. “I’m so proud of you,” she said. “Both you and Caroline. You’re strong, independent women.”

  “Sometimes a little too strong.” Stephen spoke his two cents.

  “But, darling—” Joanna kissed his cheek “—that’s the way you wanted them to be.” She dropped her voice to a deeper tone. “Strong enough to make it in a man’s world.”

  “That’s not funny, Jo.”

  “No it isn’t, so pay the bill and let’s go see our grandson. I told Caroline we’d come by for a visit before we left town.”

  Stephen fished his wallet out of his pocket and laid his credit card on the table. The waiter immediately whisked it away. Stephen pushed back his chair.

  As he stood, he held out his hand. “Congratulations on opening your old man’s eyes.”

  She shook his hand, then remembered what Tuck said about families hugging. On impulse, she hugged him. “I wasn’t trying to be difficult.”

  He squeezed her tight. “I seem to remember Caroline saying that once.”

  “Yes.” She drew back. “I think we’re a lot like you.”

  He nodded. “I really want my girls to be happy.”

  “Then stop interfering in our lives.”

  “That’s hard when you love someone.”

  Joanna linked her arm through her husband’s. “But he’s going to try very, very hard.”

  Grace kissed them goodbye and walked out into the bright April day. The sun warmed her skin and her mood. She was going back to work, but this time on her terms and in her own way. She didn’t have to prove anything to anyone but herself. Then she would decide what she wanted to do for the rest of her life. She had a feeling she already knew.

  All she could see were dark eyes calling her home. A home that had a table with names carved on it and a wall of photos that touched her heart.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  TUCK SPENT THE DAY doing what he always did on Sundays—housework. He did the laundry, changed his bed and washed Sam’s, then he vacuumed and made a list of things he needed from the grocery store. He put his work clothes in a bag for the cleaners and set it by the back door so he wouldn’t forget it in the morning.

  He hated every minute of the tedious, boring chores. It crossed his mind that if he had a wife she would help run the household. That wouldn’t be bad. Suddenly he could envision Grace here and that was a startling revelation. He didn’t push it away as he normally would. Maybe his mind-set was changing. Maybe Grace was changing his way of thinking. Glancing at his watch, he saw it was mid-afternoon and Grace hadn’t returned.

  Although, he hadn’t asked her to, had he? He should have, but he didn’t want to pressure her. She was feeling her
way now and he recognized that. There’d probably never been two more mismatched people than the two of them. But they’d found each other. Grace carried a lot of responsibility with the Whitten Firm and he couldn’t see her giving that up for good. And he would never ask her to.

  He walked into the small bedroom he used for an office. It used to be his and Eli’s room until they moved upstairs. He was in the process of redoing it for Brady. His computer was now in his room and soon he’d have to put his office back together. Brady wasn’t going to live here.

  He sucked in a deep breath, went into his bedroom and sat at his computer. He was working on an embezzlement case and had all the evidence to turn over to the district attorney. A woman who had worked thirty years for a large company had steadily been depositing over a half million dollars into a bogus account.

  The owner had finally become suspicious and talked with the district attorney, who asked the Texas Rangers to investigate. In the morning, Tuck would turn in his findings and probably by tomorrow evening the woman would be arrested. He hoped the theft was worth it because prison was not a place for a sixty-year-old woman. What made people do such crazy things?

  He stood and flexed his shoulders, needing exercise. Grabbing his hat, he headed for the corral. He glanced at his watch again. Grace hadn’t called or come back. He had expected her to. He’d really wanted her to.

  GRACE DRESSED IN JEANS, sneakers and a mint-green blouse and headed for Tuck’s. He hadn’t asked her to come back, but last night they both had been feeling the same thing. There was no question in her mind that their feelings were real. She had to see him.

  To tell him she was going back to work.

  As she drove up she saw him on a horse, galloping toward the barn. Her heart skipped a beat. Dressed in jeans and a chambray shirt, his hat was pulled low over his eyes. She quickly got out of her car.

  Sam barked at her feet. She picked him up, her eyes on Tuck.