“You two know, if you get in a fist fight, you won’t be riding a four-wheeler for the rest of the day. You know this as well as I do.
That was about all Jeff could take. When he started to cross the yard, Zane grabbed him. “She can take care of it.”
“But they could hurt her. They’re both bigger than she is. A lot bigger.” He turned back to look at her, a look of concern on his face. “What is she, a hundred pounds soaking wet?”
“Well, she’s closer to a hundred and twenty. She’s more solid than she looks. At any rate, they won’t hurt her. She’s a lot tougher than you might think.”
Michael tried to throw a punch around her, and almost knocked her down. She caught herself, and turned around and glared at him. “Michael, settle down. Do you want me to go get Mom? I’m sure she would be really happy to know you two are fighting over a four-wheeler.”
Michael shook his head and dropped his arms to his side.
“I think you both need to wait till the next round to ride. What do you think, Zane?”
“I think that’s fair. Does either one of you care to argue?” Zane asked, as he crossed his big arms over his chest. “We can still go get Mom.”
When neither one of them bothered to say another word, Zane turned around and hollered at the first person he saw. “Hey, Abby, do you want this four-wheeler?”
She looked up at Zane, and grinned. “Thanks.” Without another word, she hoped on it, and took off.
Zane watched the direction she was headed. It seemed like she was trying to chase Alex down. He stood there grinning to himself. There was definitely something going on there.
*******
They all spent the next couple of hours trading off and running more races. Sure enough, James wouldn’t let Lisa near one of the four wheelers by herself.
Just as Zane started talking about running the second doubles race, Christy pulled up in the driveway. She had someone with her. No one could figure out who it was until Zane went running across the yard. They realized when he went for the passenger side door who it was.
When Amanda got out of the car, and didn’t have a black eye, he just asked, “So, did you two just decide to join us today?”
Christy had made it out of the car, and looked over to answer him. “She called and asked me if I thought you all would care if we crashed the party.”
“Of course not. The more, the merrier.” He pulled Amanda clear of the door and shut it behind her. He kept hold of her hand as he started back across the yard with Christy beside them. “We were just getting ready to run our second doubles race. Do you two want to join? Amanda can ride with me, and you can ride with Phillip.”
“I didn’t think you ever raced in the doubles races.” Christy had to hide her grin. She would have to be careful. Zane was usually pretty quick and caught everything going on around him. That was part of what made him such a good cop.
He hadn’t noticed, or had choose to ignore it. With it being Zane, she would almost bet, he was just ignoring her. “I am today.”
When they started getting the four wheelers lined up, Zane started calling off the teams. “Okay, this time it’s Christy and Phillip, Abby and Alex, Mom and Dad, Jeff and Hannah again, of course. Let’s see if Jeff can hang on this time. Hannah doesn’t want to lose him,” he said with a smirk, looking at Jeff. “And Amanda and I.” When he included himself in the last team, there were a lot of surprised looks. Christy was right. Zane didn’t race in the doubles races. He didn’t like depending on someone else to win.
Zane looked over at Lisa. “Hey, do you think you could fill in for me, and start the race?”
“Sure, I’d love to,” she said giving him a big grin.
She stood back waiting for everyone to get ready. She couldn’t help but watch Jeff and Hannah. Hannah was running the first leg of the race again. But this time when Jeff got on behind her, he grabbed her and pulled her up against him, and wrapped his arms around her tight. He had her clutched to him so tight this time, Hannah probably felt like she was wearing him. She wasn’t sure they were going to do any better this time though, because now Hannah looked dazed.
This time when the teams started showing back up, Zane and Amanda were back first. Lisa couldn’t help but tease him a little bit. “See, Zane, you can win at doubles.”
He just looked at her and grinned. “She knows what the gas is for.”
They didn’t win this time, but Jeff and Hannah were second instead of last. Phillip and Christy and Jamie and Carl came in at about the same time.
Just a few seconds before Alex and Abby got back, Mark was talking about going after them. He had noticed, like a lot of others, they were really enjoying each-others company. When they pulled up beside the other four wheelers, it was obvious what had delayed them. They had gotten stuck in the mud. It was a true testament to the way Missouri weather could change. You could start out with snow in the morning, and end up with mud by noon.
Jamie took one look at them and said, “It’s time to quit.”
“Yeah, we have more mud than snow at this point. We’ll all start getting stuck now.” Carl looked over at Alex and Abby. “And you two need to go get cleaned up. Abby, did you sit down in it?”
Abby just flushed bright red, and nodded her head, determined not to speak. Alex decided to come to her rescue. “Well, she was already off, and I was trying to get off, and tripped. We went down together. That’s the reason I have it up to my elbows. I was trying not to land on her.” By the time Alex was done with his explanation, Abby was red from her collar to her hair line, and he looked like he was fighting a burst of laughter. Mark looked hard at the two, wondering if there was something Alex was leaving out.
“I wonder if I have any of Jenny’s clothes here,” Jamie said, eyeing Abby’s legs. “If I don’t, you’re going to have to borrow sweats from Alex. They’re the only two with legs long enough. I’m not sure, but your legs may actually be longer than Jenny’s. How tall are you, anyway?”
“Five eleven.” When she spoke, it was barely above a whisper. She really didn’t like being the center of attention. Especially if someone was pointing out her height. She didn’t like being so tall.
“Wow, you really are tall,” Jamie said, eyeing Abby’s legs again. “And most of it is leg.”
“Mom, we need to get in and get changed. I’m sure I’m not the only one, but I’m starving.” Alex was doing his best to change his mom’s focus. He could tell talking about how tall she was, was starting to make Abby very uncomfortable.
“Okay, you two go through the back door. You’re going to have to strip in the kitchen and the laundry room. We’ll get you robes to wear to the bathroom. Come on. Get moving.”
*******
By the time Alex and Abby had managed to get cleaned up, everybody else was in the house, getting sit down for lunch. Alex had to loan Abby sweats. Jenny’s jeans weren’t quite big enough. This had made Abby feel worse, and now she wasn’t wanting to eat.
“Abby, what’s wrong?” Jamie had noticed she looked like she was about to cry, and she was now patting her on the shoulder.
Mark was sitting next to her, and heard when she mumbled, “I obviously need to lose weight.”
“Abby, don’t start that again. You’re not fat. Your weight is fine for your height.” Mark sounded frustrated. They had obviously been over this several times.
“She thinks she’s fat?” This had come from Alex, who now wore a look of horror. “Please, listen to me very closely. You are not fat. You’re perfect.”
Mark couldn’t help but grin. Alex’s opinion would probably be the only one that would really matter. And Mark couldn’t have hoped for a better reaction out of him.
When her head popped up, her cheeks were pink, but she was looking at Alex. “You’re not just saying that?”
“No,” he said, shaking his head, and looking her straight in the eyes. “Please, eat. You do not need to lose weight. You’re beautiful.” That just made her ch
eeks even pinker, but she did finally agree to eat.
Jamie had made four, huge pots of chili, and everybody was sitting at the kitchen table warming up. Lisa had just taken a bite when the baby kicked so hard she almost choked. “Wow.” She sat there trying to catch her breath.
“You okay, Tiger?” James asked, a look of concern on his face.
“Yeah. This little guy’s going to be quite a football player.”
“You think he’s going to be a kicker, like his uncle Zane?” Luke asked, with a grin.
“There’s a good chance of it. He’s got a very strong kick,” Lisa answered with a laugh.
James reached over and rubbed her belly a little bit. Just then the baby kicked again. “Wow, he does have a strong kick. Maybe he’ll make it to pro football,” he said, grinning down at her.
“Well, it’s going to be a while before we find that out.”
“Can I ask you two a question?” This was the first time Jeff had spoken since they entered the kitchen and sat down. He had been sitting and staring at Hannah like he was afraid to take his eyes off her. Lisa wasn’t sure if it was because he was afraid she would disappear, or if he didn’t trust her well enough to turn his back on her. Maybe it was a little of both. One thing was certain, he looked like he was getting closer to giving into those thoughts he was talking about earlier.
“Sure. Ask away.” She had to fight hard not to grin too big at him.
“Why haven’t you two gotten married?” Jeff asked, sounding truly puzzled.
“She won’t marry me.” James looked down at Lisa with a smirk on his handsome face.
“Why won’t you marry him? It’s obvious there is a lot...”
Just then Hannah kicked him in the shin, causing him to jump and turn toward her. “I’ll explain later.” She tried to whisper, but not being one to ever try and hide anything, she wasn’t any good at it.
Jeff just sat there with a puzzled look on his face.
“What am I missing? He figured it out, and you didn’t even have to give him hints.”
“It’s just as plain as the nose on your face, Man. We keep telling you, stop thinking so hard,” Luke said, shaking his head. “You’re thinking so hard; you’re giving me a headache when I’m around you.”
“Wait. He hasn’t told her...” Jeff stopped mid-sentence. This time when Hannah had kicked him in the shin, he ended up grunting. Somehow, she had managed to kick him in the exact same spot that she had kicked him the first time. He was wondering if he was going to have a bruise. He was going to have to watch what he said. If she kicked him with that work boot she had on again, he most definitely would have a bruise.
“I get it. You don’t have to explain anything. And would you please, stop kicking me?”
Chapter 18 – Tuesday, January 1 – Mindi and Luke’s Wedding Reception
“The wedding was beautiful. You are beautiful.” He hesitated for a moment, then added, “Well, you are more than beautiful. As always.”
Lisa just looked up at him. They were dancing, and she was in his arms. She was content to wait for him to get to the point.
“Walking down the aisle with you caused me to imagine you walking down the aisle towards me.” He was looking down at her, and when he spoke again, he sounded a little nervous. “I was wondering what your idea of your perfect wedding would be.”
“My wedding will be perfect, no matter what, just as soon as my perfect groom figures out what he’s leaving out.”
His eyes grew a little starry as he stared down at her. Sometimes he wished she wouldn’t say things like that. But then again, it gave him hope, and kept him trying. “Are you feeling more sentimental than normal right now? What if I asked you now?”
“James, don’t start. If you would stop trying to think so hard, and just go with your instincts, you’d figure it out really fast.”
“Oh please, Tiger. I’m going crazy here.”
“That’s all I can tell you.” She stepped out of his arms. “I need to sit down. My feet are starting to really hurt. These heels are murder.”
They walked back over to their table and he pulled her chair out for her. When she sat down, he sat down beside her. “Do you want me to rub your feet?”
“I would love for you to rub my feet. If this wasn’t my sister’s wedding, I wouldn’t have these things on.”
He angled their chairs toward each other, and pulled her feet into his lap. At first, he just looked at the three-inch heels like they were alien star ships. They had big bows that crossed the tops of her feet.
“Untie them like shoe strings,” Lisa said, realizing what his problem was.
He tugged on one end of a bow, and watched it come undone. “Women’s clothing can be a bit baffling at times.” He heard her sigh as the shoes come off her feet. She flexed her toes, encouraging blood flow.
When his hands wrapped around her foot, she started wondering if having him rub her feet had been a bad idea. It felt wonderful. Too wonderful. It was affecting parts of her she didn’t realize would react to him touching her feet. It had to be the pregnancy hormones.
When a moan escaped her lips, he looked up at her and grinned. “Is that better?”
“Yes,” she said, nearly growling, speaking through her teeth.
It was over too soon, and he had put her feet back down in the floor. “Do you need anything to eat or drink? You didn’t eat a whole lot of your dinner.”
“I’d like something to drink, please.”
When he got up and walked away, Lisa felt his mom’s hand on hers. Lisa turned and looked the older lady in the eye. Until now, she had been completely quiet. Once she spoke, Lisa understood why. She didn’t want James to hear this conversation.
“Lisa, I know you love my son. What are you waiting for? You’ve got to tell me. I’m going crazy over here. The closer you get to your due date, the wilder he gets.” She squeezed her hand with affection. “I know he covers it well, but he’s losing his mind right now. He hates having to leave you at night. And I’m not talking about sex. He just wants to be with you, so he knows you’re okay.”
“Momma Sullivan, it’s really simple. Too simple in fact. We’ve been over this before. He’s over thinking it. And it doesn’t seem to matter how many times I tell him to stop thinking so hard, he just isn’t getting it.”
Mrs. Sullivan gave her a confused look. “I guess I’m still not getting it yet, either.”
“I told him when he found out I was pregnant, I would only marry him for one reason. Now, you know I’m in love with him.” Lisa laid her free hand over hers where it still rested on her other one, and looked her in the eyes. “So, ask yourself, with what you know, what could I possibly want from him.”
“His love?” Mrs. Sullivan asked, still sounding a little puzzled.
“You’re getting it a lot faster than he is.”
“I was wondering the last time we talked about this, if that was what it was, but, you know he loves you.”
“Yes, I guess I do. And it’s getting nearly impossible for me to keep saying no. But he has to say it first,” Lisa said, sounding frustrated to her own ears.
“He’s not told you he loves you?” The older woman shook her head, almost wearing a look of amazement.
“No, he has not. And I know it’s illogical, but I can’t marry him until he does. I won’t trap him in a marriage he doesn’t want. I love him too much for that.”
“Lisa, he wants to marry you. He loves you.”
“I’m sorry. It has to come from him.”
“Okay, Sweetheart, I understand and I’m on your side now.”
“Don’t be too hard on him. Because of Tracy Lewis and Greg Becket growing up, he had convinced himself my parents wouldn’t except him into the family. I don’t think Bridget Hart treating him like a piece of meat has helped a whole lot either. My guess is, that’s why he hasn’t asked me before now. That’s also the reason I can’t just tell him. You know how James is. He has to figure it out for himself, o
r he’ll just talk himself into believing I’m just trying to tell him what he wants to hear.”
“What do you mean about Tracy Lewis and Greg Becket?” Mrs. Sullivan asked, sounding puzzled again.
“I didn’t know any of this until Dad went and talked to James about it. Apparently, Dad found out from Luke. They picked on him growing up, because he’s black. I actually got a taste of it firsthand a little while back. James and I had gone to the store together, and we came across Greg. Joe Harris and James wouldn’t let me scratch his eyes out. I still might, if I come across him by myself in the future.”
“Sweetheart, don’t go after him. If he hurt you, James would commit murder. You know that as well as I do.”
Lisa turned and looked at Mrs. Sullivan. “I’m having a hard time forgiving what they did to him, and unfortunately, I can’t reach Tracy where she is.”
Mrs. Sullivan could tell just the thought of James’ pain, was enough to infuriate Lisa. “Why don’t you just concentrate on replacing the bad memories with good ones.”
Lisa looked over at the older woman. “Now, that’s something I can definitely promise to work on. And I’ll enjoy it while I’m at it,” Lisa said with a grin slowly spreading across her face.
“Now, please, explain what you mean by Bridget Hart treating him like a piece of meat.”
“She wants to... Oh, it annoys me to even think about it. She seems to think he’s just out there for whoever wants him. She’s completely vulgar.”
“She wants him for sex.” It wasn’t a question, and now James’ mom was annoyed.
“Yes, and if she keeps it up, I may rip her bald.”
Mrs. Sullivan could see the fire in Lisa’s eyes and just nodded her head. “Yes, Dear, you go right ahead and do that. I’m behind you all the way.”
Lisa had managed to calm down by the time she spoke again. “He’s mine, and I’m not giving him up, for any reason. We’ll get this worked out.”
All Mrs. Sullivan done was nod her head and pat Lisa’s hand on top of hers.
Oh, Baby! (The Townsends Book 2) Page 17