by Sable Hunter
“Oh, he’s good. His stomach is growling, though. I can hear it over the television.”
Aron shook his head as he returned to where the boys were sitting in front of Clint by the fireplace. “Why don’t you two play video games?”
Cason’s eyes grew wide. “We’ve already used our allotted time this week.”
“Shhhh.” Colt glared at his brother. “Don’t tell him that!”
“Are you ordering us to play Dad?” Cason asked with a mischievous little grin.
Clint hid a smile. The precocious youngsters seemed much older than they were. He wasn’t sure of their age, but they couldn’t be over five or six. To his amusement, his first cousin looked befuddled.
“Uh…yea. No. Is this a trick?” He closed one eye and stared at his progeny. “Has your mom rationed your video time?”
The twins looked at one another, then back at their father. One was nodding their head while the other just shrugged his shoulders.
“You’d better not play then. I don’t want to get in trouble with your mom. You’d better just go wash up for supper.” They jumped up and ran toward the stairs. “And use water this time!” He followed their progress to the first landing. “And soap!”
Clint laughed. “I’ve always heard about getting payback for your raisin’ – is that what this is?”
“Ha! I can almost guarantee it. With six of us, I think we worried my poor folks down to a nub. So…I understand you met your Wilder grandfather recently. How did that go?”
“I’m not sure. I think we gave him a chance to salve his conscience, but I don’t see us going over for Thanksgiving dinner.”
“How old of a man is he?”
“He’s in his late seventies.”
“Will you all inherit a piece of the hot sauce empire?”
Clint stiffened a little. Money was never his favorite topic. “I…don’t know. Rowan asked me the same question. I told my brother we need to let Mother meet with him. The last time she saw our Dad, they fought over money.” He leaned forward and clasped his hands together, feeling the warmth of the flames. “I’m torn with the whole financial aspect. Although I think she deserved it, taking McCoy money didn’t feel entirely right with me.”
“Why not? We’re blood. Everything we have, both Tebow and Highlands, grew from seed money provided by Gillian’s parents. If she’d remained with her family, the results would’ve been the same as what we allocated to her.”
“Yea, I guess so.” He cleared his throat. “I want to talk about something else. Sort of a sensitive topic and…if you think it’s none of my business, just tell me so.”
“What’s that?” Aron looked curious.
“How do you handle living with the possibility that Libby’s ca…”
Aron held up his hand to stop the flow of Clint’s words. “Don’t say it out loud. Words have power.”
Clint watched his cousin’s face go pale. “Sorry.”
“No. I’m aware of Jensen’s diagnosis. This is something you need to hear. You deal with the threatening storm by being thankful for everyday and praying there’ll be twenty thousand more days to spend with her. After you say that prayer – you put it out of your mind, and you live each day like there’s no tomorrow.”
“Hey, boys. Soup’s on.”
Jensen’s voice snapped both men to attention.
“Boys!” Aron’s voice rang out calling the twins to dinner.
…The meal they shared was as delicious as it was boisterous. Jensen didn’t think she’d laughed more in her life. To her surprise, she discovered how much Aron and Clint were alike. Although their hair color was different, she could see a certain physical resemblance. On top of that, their laugh was the same – and she could tell they shared the same tendency to be hard-heads.
“Joseph tells me you two just got back from El Paso,” Aron muttered around a mouth full of potatoes.
“Yes.” Jensen answered for them. “We were able to find the little lost girl. She’s going to be fine.”
“Ask Jensen about the ghost. I’m sure she’ll be blogging about it soon.”
“What?” Libby looked from Jensen to Clint. “You saw a ghost?”
Jensen sighed. “Maybe.” At Clint’s glare, she relented. “Yes, I think we did. A monk and his burro led us to Dulce and then…poof! They vanished right in front of our eyes.”
“Oh, there’s some weird things in this world. I don’t doubt it.” Aron forked another piece of beef.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything supernatural – other than Cady and her family healing Joseph when he was paralyzed.” Libby mused aloud.
“His healing wasn’t spooky; it was a miracle.” Aron stated with confidence. He tapped the table with his knuckle. “Speaking of Joseph, that reminds me. He told me to give you a message. He would’ve called you this afternoon, but he was running ragged trying to get those little girls of his ready for a camping trip and he’d left his phone in his other pants.” He stood and walked to the bar. “Where did I put it?”
“What are you looking for?” Libby asked.
“A card. A note from Joseph. For Jensen.” After opening the second drawer, he held a small piece of paper up in triumph. “Here it is! The clinic in Kalispell has been trying to get ahold of you for the past few weeks.”
When Jensen accepted the card and looked at it, she recognized the number. “Oh, so that’s who’s been calling me. Hmmm. I wonder what this could be about?”
“Insurance questions?” Clint suggested.
“Maybe…” Jensen tucked the card in her pocket. She was pretty sure Joseph had taken care of the bill. “I’ll give them a call tomorrow. No big deal.”
The rest of the night passed without incident. Jensen and Clint enjoyed their time with Libby and Aron, making plans to get together again soon. They left a little before nine p.m. since the drive from Kerrville to Nameless Road took about two hours.
On the way they shared small talk, making plans, talking about people they knew.
“How about a horseback ride and a picnic tomorrow?” Clint took her hand, rubbing his thumb over her fingers.
“I’ve been wanting to do that. Moon and I have formed quite a bond. When I walk out the door she neighs for me to come to the fence for a visit.”
“Animals love you. Rose used to be my skunk, now she’s yours.”
Jensen giggled. “You’re jealous.”
“A little,” he grumbled playfully. “We’ll have to get a dog, so I can have one that likes me best.”
“Hmmm.” Jensen couldn’t help but notice the way he referred to their mutual future. “What kind do you want?”
“I’ve always wanted a Catahoula Leopard, the state dog of Louisiana. They’re descended from native red wolves and the mastiffs and greyhounds brought over by Spanish explorers. They’re bred to herd cattle or hunt feral hogs. They have webbed feet for swimming and they’re one of only two breeds of dogs that can climb trees. I like the black and white ones; their coat reminds me of a speckled butterbean.”
“Ha! That’s a good name for a dog. Butterbean.”
“Good, it’s settled. We’ll find us a Butterbean.” Clint squeezed her hand and chuckled. “If we get him soon enough, he can be the ring bearer in the wedding.” Jensen’s hand trembled so hard that Clint noticed. “What’s wrong? You don’t want a dog in the wedding?”
Unsure of what to say, she chose to continue their lighthearted exchange. “Butterbean may be a girl.”
“That’s okay. She can be the flower girl.”
“You’ve been giving this some thought.”
“I have. Haven’t you? Aren’t you happy with me?”
“I am. Very much.” She wove her fingers through his. “I guess I’ve just been enjoying the present.”
“Think about it for me. Please? I’d like to take you out to dinner soon and…talk some more. Okay?”
His sincere request took her breath away. “All right.” Jensen knew she needed to do some
serious soul-searching. “You think too. There’s a lot to consider.”
“Not for me,” Clint told her flatly. “I love my family. I’ve enjoyed my career. But you’re my number one priority. Bar none.”
A flutter of nervousness made Jensen’s stomach tumble. “Tell me about Noah and Skye. They seem like an interesting couple.”
Clint realized Jensen was trying to change the subject. Not wanting to push her, he allowed himself to be led off topic. “Oh, they are. They keep busy. Noah serves as the business manager for Tebow. He also works to acquire land for reserves. He’s been instrumental in enlarging the Balcones Nature Preserve that lies adjacent to our land.”
Jensen noted the ‘our’. She couldn’t deny she liked the way it sounded.
“Together, he and Skye work tirelessly in several organizations aimed at ending violence against Native American women.”
“I’m familiar with the problem,” Jensen interjected. “One of my blogs highlighted the problem. I traveled to Canada to interview some of the authorities on the number of Native American women who’ve gone missing on the Highway of Tears, a stretch of road that runs from Prince George to Prince Rupert in British Columbia. Dozens of women, close to a hundred, have gone missing on that highway. Maybe more. No one knows if it’s a serial killer or a sex trafficking ring that’s responsible for the disappearances.”
“So many times violence against Native American women is ignored or goes unpunished. I don’t think Skye would mind me telling you that she was raped at a young age. She also was attacked by the man who killed her father and she fought back, killing him in self-defense. The courts didn’t see it that way though and she was sent to prison. While she was there, Skye was forced to have an unwanted hysterectomy.”
“Oh, my God. How horrible! How could they get away with that?”
Clint shook his head. “Unfortunately, injustice is rampant in some segments of our society. Noah is also looking into the rumor that the same thing is happening at the border with detained immigrant women. Anyway, Skye is wonderful now. Her sentence was overturned due to the tireless efforts of her brother and others. She met Noah, they fell in love and now they’ve adopted a beautiful baby girl, Blue Dawn.”
“Very impressive.” She gazed out the window, thinking of the impact for good a person’s life could have. “Just think of the legacy they’ll leave behind.”
“So will you. When the treatment you’ve developed is put into use, you’ll be instrumental in saving the lives of countless folks.”
“Hopefully, if I live to see it.”
“Don’t say that.”
“Well, some drugs hit snags. Some never see the light of day. It all depends on profit-margin.”
“Be positive.” He released Jensen’s hand to stroke her knee. “From what you’ve told me there are so many conditions that could benefit from the caplon molecule that there’s no way it can ignored.”
As he teased the inside of her thigh, she opened her legs a little wider to give him better access. A tingling thrill warmed her, causing her nipple to harden, and her sex to ache. “How far are we away from home?”
“Home?” He smiled. “Home is too far away.” Searching for a place to pull off the road, he put on his blinker and turned down a dirt road that didn’t look like it had much traffic. As soon as he stopped, he pushed the lever to the seat and scooted it back as far as it would go.
“What are you doing?”
“What do you think? Come here.” As Jensen giggled and unfastened her seatbelt, he unzipped his fly, working to free his enthusiastic cock.
“Shall I take off my panties?”
“Yea, unless you want me to tear them off.”
His intense words excited her beyond measure. Before maneuvering herself over the console, she removed her panties and lifted her skirt.
“Unbutton your top too.”
Before – the idea of what he suggested would’ve paralyzed her. No more. His loving and lavish attention to all parts of her body left Jensen no doubt he truly desired her. “Okay.” She extended one leg to join him behind the steering wheel. “Do you think there’s enough room?”
Clint didn’t wait for her to maneuver over the console, he grasped her by the waist and lifted her as if she weighed nothing. “Yea, if we get really, really close.”
Jensen gasped as he held her up to fit himself where she needed him the most. Before she could say anything, he layered his mouth to hers and groaned as she sank down on him. “Oh, God, yea. I’m home,” he whispered in her ear as he kissed her neck. “You feel so good to me. You’re mine, Jensen. Say it. Say you’re mine.”
His entreaty could not go unanswered. “I’m yours, Clint. I’m all yours.” Holding on to his shoulders, Jensen threw her head back as he suckled at her breast. Rising and falling, she gave them both what they needed as he flexed his hips, surging up into her over and over.
As they loved one another, she felt more cherished than she’d ever felt in her life. Clint adored her and the time was soon coming when he’d ask her for more. What would her answer be?
Chapter Sixteen
“I’ll meet you at the ranch at two, I promise.” Clint held the phone away from his ear as his trainer read him the riot act.
“If you don’t buckle down, you’re going to be so out of shape there’s no way we’ll get you primed for pre-season.”
“I hear you, James. I’m sorry about the other day.”
“It’s not just the other day, it’s the past three times we were scheduled to work out. If you hadn’t given me a key to the gym, I would’ve been left sitting in your driveway in the middle of Nowheresville or whatever the damn name is of that backwoods hole in the road you live in.”
“It’s Nameless not Nowheresville and the distance is less than thirty miles from downtown Austin, it’s not the backwoods. And I’m sorry I didn’t make our appointment. I have a lot of stuff going on.”
“It doesn’t do anybody a damn bit of good if I show up to train you and you don’t show up to be trained.”
“Yes. I got it. I apologize. I’ll be there today. You have my word.”
“You’d better be.”
The line went dead, and Clint blew out a harsh breath. “That was one angry little man.” Checking his watch, he made sure he was on schedule. Today’s meeting was one Kyd arranged with a real estate agent to get a feel for what the market would be like. He just hoped the housing units would appeal to the public and not be an albatross hanging around their neck. Clint couldn’t keep a smile from appearing on his lips – not from the thought of a bad investment – but in spite of it. He was just so damn happy nothing could bring him down.
As his truck ate up the miles between Liberty Hill and Jarrell, he thought about Jensen. He loved every minute he spent with her. She never bored him. They found an endless number of topics to discuss and debate. He loved her mind; she was not only his equal intellectually – she was his superior in many ways. And he didn’t care, she made him want to read more, learn more, acquire knowledge with her. Beyond that – he loved to see her smile. Hell, he loved to watch her eat. Even more, he loved the way she wrapped around him at night. Now, he knew what the old saying truly meant.
When two become one.
And he wanted to become one with her, in every way that counted – including a marriage certificate.
Tomorrow, he planned to drive into Austin to find the perfect ring. He’d also made reservations for Saturday night at her favorite restaurant and he planned on popping the big question on bended knee.
Upon arriving at the building site, he saw Kyd standing next to the real estate agent’s car. ROUND ROCK REALTY was what the sign read on the door. The agent was a friendly looking fella with a shiny bald head. He looked jovial with a big smile and a bigger belly. As Clint exited his vehicle, the man waved Clint over.
“Wow, what a thrill. I am such a fan.” He came forward to shake Clint’s hand. “I can’t wait to partner with you to sell the
se babies.”
Clint glanced at Kyd. “I thought we were renting them.”
The agent held up his hands. “That’s up to you, but if you’re game – I can have them all sold for you by the time they’re finished. The market is jumping and with the amenities your offering and the safety factor – we’ll have a SOLD-OUT sign over the Grand Opening announcement before you know it.”
After hearing the pitch, Clint and Kyd agreed to discuss the idea. Once the agent was gone, they toured the area and checked out how well the painters were progressing. “I think you were right,” he told Kyd. “Sage green is a good color. I also like the terra cotta accents.”
“I’m pleased. I’ll have to say you were right to have eight different floorplans and six color schemes.”
Clint nodded as he stepped up to a wall to feel the textured finish of the sheetrock. “Everybody wants to feel special.”
“I know you’ve been busy, so I took care of something when you weren’t looking.”
“What’s that?” Clint asked, glancing over his shoulder to see Kyd watching some of the workers out of the window.
“I took all the necessary steps to have Dad declared dead and I reserved the chapel where mother attends church for his memorial.”
“Wow. Okay. I’m glad you did.”
“I also invited Dad’s father to the service.”
Clint whirled around. “Why?”
“Because…the girls want to have him there. They want everything settled. I guess the stress of mother finding her family, then the discovery of the truck – they just want all the loose ends tied together.”
“I’m not sure that’s the answer.” He sighed. “But whatever…I’ve got my own things to worry about.” Easing up to Kyd, he touched him on the arm. “I’m about to propose to Jensen.”
“Really? Congratulations!” He whacked Clint on the arm and then embraced him. “That’s incredible! Although…if you don’t have a family dinner and let us all meet her, you’re going to face a revolt. Especially since Mom heard you’ve taken her to Tebow already.”