Cimarron Refuge

by Margaret Daley

  Laura threw a wide-eyed look at Alice. “They have their moments.” On more than one occasion she had caught her twins whispering and sending her and Peter furtive glances. I’m afraid that Alice’s and Aunt Sarah’s matchmaking has definitely spread to my two youngest. I’m afraid to turn my back on them. No telling what they will do.

  “I’m so glad you could come pick me up. I want this to be a total surprise to Peter.” A huge grin curved Alice’s mouth.

  Laura turned her vehicle down the gravel road that led to the barn. “Well, we’re here.”

  “Are you sure he’s at the ranch? It’s Thursday and he’s usually at school until two or three in the summer.”

  “He’s taking a few vacation days. He had some things to do around the place before school starts again. I only dropped Sean off an hour ago. Peter told me he and some of the kids from the youth group had a lot of work to finish. They’ve received several more animals.”

  Alice tsk-tsked. “That boy doesn’t know how to take it easy. Vacation means no work or at least more play than work.”

  “He’s really thrown himself into the Shepherd Project and the Henderson Foundation. He told me once the foster home is built the kids staying in it will take over the project with the animals.”

  “You talk to him a lot?”

  The twinkle in Alice’s eyes told Laura to tread lightly with her answer, especially with two little boys in the backseat, unusually quiet, listening to every word. If she gave the woman any encouragement, Alice would be sending out the wedding announcements this week. “Although I’ve ended up heading the fund-raiser, I like to keep Peter informed of what’s going on. This is his idea. The rest of us are along for the ride.”

  Alice chuckled. “Even back in high school he always had the big ideas. Why, I can remember—”

  “Hold that thought.” Laura loved hearing stories about Peter growing up, but she’d pulled up beside the barn and Peter was striding toward them.

  Peter came around to Alice’s side of the car. “What brings you-all out here?”

  “Help an old lady out of the car and I’ll tell you.” Alice motioned with her hand for him to open the door wider while she clutched the notification letter in one hand and her purse in the other.

  As her twins raced toward the barn, Laura climbed from her car and rounded it while Peter assisted Alice to her feet. His gaze lit upon the paper in his foster mother’s hand.

  Curiosity took hold of Peter. “What do you have there?”

  “A dream come true!”

  The joyful glee in Alice’s voice rang out, vying with the hammering coming from the barn. “Alice got a brilliant idea and today it paid off.” Laura’s own delighted excitement mirrored Alice’s.

  “With Laura’s help I applied to that show—More Than Dreams—to build you the foster home you wanted on this ranch, and they have said yes, not to one, but two! This is a wonderful day!”

  Peter’s eyes grew round. “You did what?”

  Alice thrust the official registered letter into Peter’s hands. “They sent a letter as well as called me this morning. Read it. The head producer wants you to phone him as soon as you receive this. So come on. Let’s go up to the house and make that call.” She tugged on Peter’s arm.

  His eyes even rounder, Peter looked up from reading the letter, shaking his head. “I don’t believe this. This has got to be a joke.”

  “No, it isn’t. I would never joke about something as serious as this.” Alice hooked her arm through his. “Besides, I talked to the sweet man.”

  Peter turned toward Laura. “You were in on this and you didn’t say a word?”

  She smiled. “It wouldn’t have been a surprise if I had.”

  His shock transformed into wonderment. “You know what this means?”

  “The money we raise in September can go toward staffing the houses and other things that will be needed.” His awestruck expression was the best payment for her time filling out the application, Laura decided.

  “The suspense is killing me, Peter. Come on.”

  He laughed at Alice’s eagerness. “I can’t leave the kids. They’re finishing up making another pen for some goats.”

  “Goats! When did you get them?” Laura peered toward the entrance into the barn where her twins had disappeared five minutes before.

  “These weren’t left on my doorstep. The FFA teacher donated them to the project. Goats are good for petting. The younger children will enjoy them.” He patted Alice’s gnarled hand on his arm. “Let me see if Sean and Chad will keep an eye on everyone until I can get back. I know how much this means to you. Be right back.”

  “We’ll come with you. I haven’t seen the inside of your barn since all your animal additions.”

  “Alice, that’s not a bad idea. I want to check on the twins and make sure they aren’t getting into too much trouble. This past week they have been awfully quiet and well behaved.” Laura strode with Peter and his foster mother into the barn’s cool interior.

  Sean pounded a nail into a board while Chad held it straight. The two boys chatted but stopped when they saw them coming.

  “Hi, Mom. You weren’t gone long. We have at least another two hours of work.”

  “That’s okay. Where’s Matthew and Joshua?”

  Sean nodded toward the second stall from the end. “They’re playing with the new puppies. We’re gonna try to find them homes or at least most of them when they’re older. Maybe we could—”

  Laura hurried to cut off his request before the twins heard. “One dog is enough right now.”

  Peter scanned the area. “Where are the others?”

  “They went on out to start working on the fence that needs repairing.” Sean positioned another nail and drove it into the board.

  “We’re going up to the house for a while. If there’s a problem, come get me. I’m leaving you in charge, Sean, Chad.”

  “You are? I mean, great. Chad and I will finish up in here then help with the fence.”

  As Peter and Alice started for the entrance, Laura lingered. “Please watch out—”

  “I know, Mom. Watch Joshua and Matthew. They won’t do anything wrong. They know if they do they won’t be able to come out here and help with the animals.”

  Since when had her son gotten so wise? Only a few months before he would have yelled at them and told them not to do anything wrong or else. As she hurried to catch up with Peter and Alice, Laura was struck by the revelation that Sean in the past had only been emulating Stephen. Now, though, he had seen how Peter interacted with people who had messed up. Peter didn’t fly into a rage as her husband had. Peter dealt with most situations with patience and understanding.

  So much in her family was changing and mostly because of the man next to her. She’d known Peter for almost five months, and his impact on her life left her facing the fact that she was probably in over her head.

  The second they reached Peter’s house, he went straight for the phone in his kitchen and punched in the numbers listed on the letter while Alice eased down onto a chair.

  Laura held her breath while he was switched to the producer. Every muscle tensed in excitement as she watched Peter converse with the person on the other end of the line.

  Peter is a good man and deserves this. Better yet, the foster children deserve a good home.

  Peter hung up, his hand lingering on the receiver, his stare fastened on the phone.

  “Peter! Give us the details.” Alice’s raised voice brought him out of his stunned state.

  “There was a part of me that even as I was waiting to be put through to Mr. McGraw figured this whole thing was a hoax.” He swung fully around to face them. “It’s not. It’s going to happen the last week in August, less than a month away. We’ll be one of the first shows on next season.” He drew in a deep breath. “They decided to move a few shows around so they could slot ours early.”

  Joy sent Laura across the room and into his arms. She kissed him on the cheek.
Then embarrassed by her impulsive reaction, she stepped back. “Everything is happening so fast.” In more ways than just the show building the homes. She could barely grasp who she was becoming. Her feelings for Peter were quickly changing, evolving into something she wasn’t sure she could handle.

  “Yeah, Mr. McGraw told me that he was a foster child and he couldn’t pass up this opportunity. He thinks the Henderson Foundation sounds great. A couple of the production people from the show will be here in a few weeks to start things rolling.” Peter shook his head. “This is unbelievable and it wouldn’t have been possible without you two.”

  “It really was all Alice’s doing. She came up with the idea. I just helped with the application.”

  Alice’s face reddened. “Nonsense. It was both of us.”

  Peter looked first at Laura, then his foster mother. “I don’t care how it came about. Thank goodness the kids will have homes months before I ever imagined.”

  Alice lumbered to her feet, swaying toward the table. She clutched its edge.

  “Are you all right?” Laura rushed to her side and grasped her arm to make sure she was steady.

  Peter came up on Alice’s other side. “Are you eating enough?”

  “I’m eating fine. Whatever made you ask that?”

  “I saw your refrigerator a few weeks ago.”

  “And you brought me some food.” She tapped his chest with her index finger. “I’m okay. Quit worrying about me. We have too many other things to think about. A lot is going to happen in the next month.”

  Peter laughed. “And in the middle of all that, school will start.”

  “Oh, I hadn’t thought about that.” Out of the corner of her eye Laura caught something red flashing by the window. Matthew? He had on a red shirt. No, why would he be up at the house?

  She walked to the back door and stuck her head out to see what was going on. She saw someone small wearing a red shirt ducking into the barn. It could only be Matthew. Her mother alarm went off.

  “I think we should get back to the barn. Matthew is up to something. The back of my neck is tingling. That’s a dead giveaway.” Laura didn’t wait for Alice or Peter but headed across the yard.

  Inside the deserted structure she searched the shadows, but Matthew was nowhere to be seen. She strode toward the back and found all the members of the youth group working with both her youngest sons in the middle, helping, too. Thankfully, she’d overreacted—this time.

  * * *

  SEVERAL WEEKS LATER with coffee in hand Laura went out onto her porch to get the newspaper and nearly tripped over the vase of flowers sitting before the door. She caught herself before falling, but the hot liquid sloshed over the rim of her mug and onto her hand. She dropped her cup, and it shattered into tiny pieces all over the wooden slats.

  Having been up late working on the fund-raiser, she tried to blink the gritty feel from her eyes so she could focus better on the array of multicolored flowers before her. But exhaustion clung to her like sweat on a hot, steamy day. She picked up the vase, examining it. A bright white card stuck out of the floral arrangement. She plucked it out, and setting the vase back on the porch, she read the cursive writing that looked familiar.

  Laura, I wanted to give you beautiful flowers for a beautiful person. I’m hoping you and your children will go riding with me this evening. Peter.

  Huh? This isn’t Peter’s handwriting. It’s— She examined it for a moment. It’s Alexa’s. Her daughter, too? Trying her hand at matchmaking?

  She didn’t have time to ponder the question because the phone rang. She snatched up the vase and hurried back into the house to answer it. “Hello.”

  “Hi, Laura. This is Peter.”

  After the first word, she knew who it was. His deep voice was smooth and husky, very distinctive, and its sound made her smile.

  “I’d love for you and your family to come out this evening and we can go for a ride. After all, we have something big to celebrate.”

  Puzzled, Laura studied the card again. It was Alexa’s handwriting. She was sure. “Fine. They’ll love it. It doesn’t take any convincing to get them to go for a ride.”

  “Great. How about five? Afterward, we can order a pizza and enjoy the brownies you made for me. Thank you for thinking of me.”

  Brownies? She’d discovered Alexa, Joshua and Matthew yesterday morning making some. They’d said it was for a friend. She’d been so busy she hadn’t questioned them. Next time she would. “I didn’t make any for you.”

  “But the note said—”

  “Did you put some flowers for me on my porch?”

  “No, but that’s not a bad idea. Someone sent you flowers?”

  For a second she imagined she heard worry—or was it jealousy?—in his voice. “The card said they were from you. But I know who sent them.”

  “The twins?”

  “They were probably in on it. Alexa wrote the card. She tried to disguise her handwriting, but the heart over the i was a dead giveaway.”

  His chuckle floated over the line. “A heart. Great touch. I’ll have to think about using that when courting a woman.”

  Courting a woman! She felt her temperature rise. Words fled her thoughts.

  “I still want you to come over. Five?”

  “Sure. How about the kids?”

  “Bring them. They went to a lot of trouble to make this happen. I would hate to disappoint them. If this is what they’ve been planning, let’s give them what they want or there’s no telling what they will do.”

  “Smart man. We’ll be there, except for Sean.”

  “Oh, yeah. The lock-in at the church. Until then.”

  When she returned the receiver to its cradle, her legs suddenly weak, she sank back against the table in the living room. Well, at least with the kids there this wouldn’t be a date. She could relax and enjoy the evening.

  She straightened and decided to clean up the mess on the porch. But as she picked up the shards, they reminded her of her life when she’d come to Cimarron City—shattered into hundreds of pieces. Slowly she was gluing it back together. She’d found something she really enjoyed doing—Peter’s foundation and fund-raiser. Her debts were slowly dwindling with careful management of her money. Even not working for two months during the summer, paying no rent had really helped.

  So why was she so worried about what was happening to her heart? Three of her children wanted to see her and Peter together—at least dating. That was obvious from their comments and their antics. And that was the problem. It was one thing if she got hurt if a relationship didn’t work out between her and Peter, but if her children did... She couldn’t risk that. They had gone through so much in the past year. Sean was still hurting, and she wasn’t sure how he would feel about Peter “courting” her.

  What do I do? I really care about Peter, and he’s great with the kids. But are they the reason he’s always around? Does he see me as the means to that family he wants? If I ever wanted to get married again, and that is a big if, I would want the man to marry me because of me. Stephen always tried to mold me into someone I wasn’t. Peter hasn’t, but then he still has some deep issues concerning his ex-wife. What do I do?

  There. She had finally voiced something that had been troubling her. Did he like her company because of her or her family? Could he ever get beyond his wife leaving him, to trust another? She knew she wanted that in a relationship.

  When the phone rang a few minutes later, she half expected it to be Peter again. “Forget something?”

  “Forget something? I don’t understand.”

  “Cara!” Laura chuckled. “I thought you were Peter calling me again. What’s up?”

  “Mason’s back in the hospital. He’s had a relapse. They have exhausted all avenues here in St. Louis. They now think it’s a fungus that isn’t responding to their treatment. They’re talking about sending him to the Mayo Clinic....” A long pause broken by a sob followed.

  “Oh, Cara, what can I do? When will you-a
ll leave?”

  “I—I don’t know. He’s in intensive care and the doctors are conferring right now. I had to call someone. I don’t know what to do anymore. I—I...” Her voice trailed off into another sob.

  “Don’t give up, Cara. Things will work out for the best.” As she spoke the words to her friend, there was a part of her that was amazed she had said that. She wouldn’t have a month ago, but she had found herself feeling more and more hopeful.

  “Yes. It’s been so hectic since bringing him into the hospital a few hours ago. I haven’t had time to calm down, but you’re right. I should visit the hospital’s chapel.”

  Laura heard voices in the background, then Cara said, “I’ve got to go. The doctors want to talk with me. I’ll let you know what’s going on when I know. Bye.”

  When Laura replaced the receiver in its cradle, tears smarted her eyes. Mason and Cara were so much in love. Please, let Mason recover. I don’t know what my friend would do if she lost him.

  * * *

  LATER THAT DAY as Laura rode toward the stream, she thought back over the conversation she’d had with Cara—the second one—right before she had come to the ranch. Mason and Cara were going to the Mayo Clinic early the next morning. Arrangements had just been completed and Cara had wanted her to know. She’d heard the worry in her friend’s voice and wished she could be there with her. But at the end Cara had assured her everything would work out. Laura hoped so.

  Near the creek she dismounted her horse and tied the reins to a small tree nearby while Peter did likewise. Alexa, Joshua and Matthew followed suit, then huddled together.

  Laura caught Peter’s gaze and shrugged. “Sorry, they’re never gonna change. I feel like I’m on a stage and they’re the audience.”

  “We could always give them something to talk about.”

  Surprise shocked the words from her mind. Instantly a picture of them locked together in an embrace popped into her thoughts.

  He chuckled. “G-rated.” He held out his hand to her.

  She took it, trying to ignore the tiny bit of disappointment taking hold.

  “Let’s go for a walk and see if they follow.”