by C. C. Coburn
Jack turned and she was pleased to see him swallow. “Fine. I’ll be done in a minute,” he said gruffly.
“Would you like a drink before we go?”
“I’m driving,” he said, and stood. “That’s done. Anything else need fixing while I’m here?”
Grace poured two tall glasses of iced tea, then sat on the sofa and patted the spot beside her. “We’re a few minutes early. Come sit down and relax.”
Jack went to the kitchen faucet, where he washed and dried his hands, before joining her. Grace handed him his drink, then clinked her glass with his. “To old times,” she said.
Jack looked into her eyes. “What are you trying to do to me, Grace?”
“Do?”
“You’ve changed your skirt.”
“Is it too short for tonight?” she asked, wide-eyed. She was prepared to change if Jack thought it was too risqué for the O’Malley dinner table, but in the meantime, she had every intention of showing Jack as much skin as possible.
She crossed one leg over the other and leaned toward him, waiting for his answer.
“It’s fine, Grace. I just want to know why you changed.”
“Why do you think?” she asked, placing a fingernail against his chest.
Jack sucked in a breath, caught her hand and put his drink on the coffee table. Then he took Grace’s glass and set it beside his. He turned to Grace, clasped her face in his hands and kissed her.
Now this is more like it, Grace thought, returning the kiss as she clasped his shirtfront in her fingers and drew him closer.
Jack broke the kiss slowly and touched his finger to the end of her nose, saying, “That’s all for now. We’re late.” He reached for her hand and drew her to her feet.
Grace stood, feeling slightly off balance and hoping the evening at the ranch passed quickly, so they could return to her apartment and continue where they’d left off.
Chapter Thirteen
“I feel strangely nervous about seeing your parents again and meeting the rest of your family,” Grace admitted as they headed out of town toward Two Elk.
“Don’t be. Mom can’t wait to see you. You already know my brothers and most of my sisters-in-law. Plus, you’re already a big hit for diagnosing Lily’s ear infection,” Jack assured her.
Still, Grace fretted most of the way. When they pulled up outside the ranch house, the front door flew open and Sarah O’Malley rushed outside.
Grace hopped down from the truck and was enfolded in Sarah’s arms. “I’m so happy to see you again, Grace,” she said. “It’s been far too long. Come on into the house.”
Relieved that Sarah held no ill will toward her for leaving Spruce Lake, Grace reached back into the truck’s cab and retrieved the flowers she’d brought for Sarah. “Thank you for inviting me, Mrs. O’Malley,” she said. “I hope you can do something with these.”
“Why, thank you, dear. And you’re way too old to be calling me Mrs. O’Malley,” she said. “It’s Sarah, and Mr. O’Malley will insist on being called Mac.”
“There she is!” Will said, coming out into the yard. Lily was on his hip, looking a lot happier than she had the previous day.
Before they climbed the porch steps, Grace was sure she’d been greeted by most of the O’Malleys and met most of their children.
Her earlier nervousness soon disappeared and she felt like one of the family again—as she had all those years ago. Only then, she hadn’t appreciated it as much as she should’ve. Everyone made their way into the kitchen, where the children resumed their seats to finish their supper.
“There are so many of us now, Grace,” Sarah explained. “We need two dinner sittings. It feels like a cruise ship.” She laughed and then went to help one of the kids.
Although she was a pediatrician, Grace didn’t always feel like a natural around children. However, the O’Malley tribe were polite and seemed to have good appetites. No one was whining about their meal and no one was throwing food at anyone else. Then again, having a grandmother like Sarah, they wouldn’t dare!
“You go on out back with the boys and watch the sunset,” Sarah said. “Carly, Beth and I will be right with you.”
“You sure you aren’t doing too much, Mom?” Jack asked. “Will and Matt should be doing their share of dinner patrol.”
“Lily’s finished, so Will’s putting her to bed.” Sarah dished out plates of fruit salad and ice cream, then wiped her hands on her apron. “Go!” She shooed Jack and Grace outside.
As she stepped onto the back porch, Grace caught her breath at the beauty of the sunset behind the mountains. The sky glowed with pinks, reds and oranges set against the deep blue sky higher up. She had a view of the sunset from her apartment in town, but it was nothing compared to this.
“Come take a seat and enjoy the serenity, Grace,” Mac O’Malley said, indicating an Adirondack chair facing the mountains.
It was a beautiful summer evening. Crickets chirruped in the garden and farther away she could hear the occasional whinny of a horse and the lowing of the cattle on the slopes. Between the mountain that sat so majestically behind the property and the house was a huge lake. Grace remembered the fall colors of the aspen groves dotted around the lake. She’d once thought the location was heaven on earth. And if she was honest with herself, she didn’t feel any differently now.
Jack sat down beside her and silently offered her a glass of white wine, and she smiled at him. They’d often sat out here and just enjoyed each other’s company in the silence of the evening.
But the calm didn’t last for long. Soon the yard was filled with O’Malley offspring. Their evening meal finished, they were ready to expend the last of their energy chasing one another around.
Sarah came out, a little girl perched on her hip. She handed Matt his daughter, who seemed to gauge the relaxed mood and placed her thumb in her mouth, closing her eyes.
The children tore around the yard like little hellions. One of them, a girl of about ten, tackled Nicolas to the ground. “Daisy!” Luke yelled a warning as if he was concerned his daughter could harm the much bigger boy. The pair both sat up, laughing. “I’m fine, Uncle Luke,” Nick called.
An older girl was happy to find a vacant seat and join the adults. Grace wondered if this was Luke’s oldest daughter, Sasha. Two younger girls chased each other but soon tired of their game. One went to sit on Luke’s lap, the other on Adam’s. Celeste and Maddy, Grace guessed. That would make the toddler in Matt’s arms...Sarah! Pleased that she was managing without further input from Jack, she glanced around and whispered to him, “Where’s Cody?”
“He’ll be here shortly,” Jack said.
Grace did a quick count of how many people lived in the ranch house. Before, it had been just the seven O’Malleys, Mac and Sarah and their five sons—although Luke and Matt had mostly been away at college when she and Jack were dating.
Now Luke had a wife and five children. Surely, with Mac and Sarah still living there, the house must be bursting at the seams. Noticing the extension built at a right angle to the house, she asked Jack, “Who lives there?” She whispered, not wanting to disturb the peace, but with the children’s noise, she figured no one else would hear.
“Mom and Pop. Cody’s moved into the apartment over the barn. It suffered smoke damage from a fire earlier this year, but my guys got the barn rebuilt and the apartment in order a month ago. As you can probably imagine, with four sisters, Cody loves having his own space.”
“You had a fire?”
“Long story,” he said. “No one was hurt and, thanks to Carly, all the horses were saved.”
“I did not save all the horses!” Carly interrupted. “Just that nasty, ornery stallion of Luke’s.” She shuddered and rubbed her cheek. “I swear I can still feel where he kicked me.”
“Good thing Luke let him roam the range and impregnate practically every mare out there. We’ll have some strong foals next year,” Mac said.
Mac wasn’t known for chatting, and G
race didn’t expect any further conversation from him. However, he seemed to want to talk. “You might like to come out for a ride with me sometime, Grace. Like we did in the old days.”
Grace and Jack had often ridden with Jack’s father to inspect the fences. She’d appreciated his quiet solitude, his capable way with animals. “I’d like that very much,” she said.
“Dinner’s ready!” Beth called from the back porch.
Since the sun had set behind the mountains now, the evening was turning chilly, as it often did in the high country. Eating outside wasn’t an option, except on the warmest of nights.
The adults piled inside, some washing their hands at the sink, others disappearing to put toddlers to bed. The older children stayed outside to play.
Jack pulled out a chair for Grace, then took the seat beside her—just as he always had. Grace wondered how many women he’d brought home over the years to share a meal with the family. How many other lucky women had been made to feel a part of this large and boisterous clan?
Cody appeared and was introduced to Grace. The kid was an O’Malley through and through. With his dark hair and eyes, he was the image of his father and all his uncles except Jack, who shared his mother’s blue eyes.
Food was passed around and conversation flowed. Now that it was dark outside, various children ran through the kitchen toward the living room and other parts of the house.
“So, Grace,” Will said as he heaped more potatoes onto his plate, “when are you going to make an honest man outta my little brother?”
Conversation ceased and Grace could feel all eyes trained on her. Will was the most outspoken of his brothers, so the question wasn’t completely out of left field, just inappropriate. She could feel Jack sitting stiffly beside her. Jack was the shiest of the brothers—even now—and she knew he’d be dying at Will’s bluntness.
She took her time swallowing the mouthful that had become lodged in her throat, then picked up her glass of water, took several sips, and replaced it on the table. “I don’t know, Will. Does your brother need to be made into an honest man?”
Mac grinned at her response and winked at her.
“He’s the only one of us who hasn’t managed to find a wife,” Will said.
“He wouldn’t be if I hadn’t accepted that posting in this town and had you turn up in my court!” his wife, Becky, said. “Lord knows, no one else would be silly enough to fall for you!”
“True,” Matt said, raising his glass. “We’d have two lovesick O’Malley bachelors if Becky hadn’t agreed to marry you in a weak moment. I still can’t wrap my head around how easily it happened, Will.”
“It had absolutely nothing to do with him!” Becky protested. “Nicolas wanted a father, and Will was available.”
Everyone laughed at that, except Will.
“You had that coming, little brother, for asking such a personal question,” Luke said, and clapped him on the back as he refilled their glasses. Then he looked right at Grace and said, “So when will you make an honest man of my brother, Grace?”
“Since I don’t think there’s a more honest man in the county, your question, Will—and its follow-up, Luke—is irrelevant.” She heard the soft exhalation of Jack’s breath beside her.
“Well said!” Sarah said. “All of you, mind your own business. Jack and Grace’s relationship is none of your concern.”
“I’m so embarrassed,” Jack muttered, just low enough for Grace to hear.
She turned her head slightly toward him and said, “Me, too.”
“We can leave, if you want,” he said a little louder, for the benefit of everyone else.
“What, and have an O’Malley man get the better of me? No way. Besides, I’ve seen what’s for dessert and I’m not going anywhere until I’ve eaten my fill. It’s been too many years since I’ve had a home-cooked meal.”
“’Atta girl!” Mac said, and raised his glass to her.
“You don’t cook?” Luke’s wife, Megan, asked.
“I’ve never needed to. My hus—my ex-husband and I dined out a lot. If we ever ate at home, it was something from the freezer.” Grace wished she’d just kept her mouth shut. TMI! she scolded herself. Soon you’ll be telling them that apart from evenings out at too many social functions, you and your ex rarely sat in the same room, let alone shared a meal.
“I wish we ate out more,” Will said, fully recovered from his mild chastisement. “My wife is a terrible cook.”
This brought gales of laughter from everyone, including Becky.
“That’s not entirely true. She makes great salads,” Matt said, emptying the remains of the salad bowl onto his plate.
“And beautiful children!” Beth added.
Relieved that the focus was now off her relationship with Jack, Grace said, “Okay, tell me about Louella. I’ve been hearing all sorts of things about her, but nothing makes much sense.”
“Which is entirely the point,” Matt said. “Louella is Will’s best friend. If you can make any sense of why a self-respecting pig would want to hang out with him in her spare time, then you’re a lot smarter than me.”
The evening continued in the same bantering vein and, too soon, dessert and coffee had been served and consumed and it was time to say their goodbyes.
Beth, Carly and Megan swapped phone numbers and email addresses with Grace, promising to be in touch early in the week. Sarah would come by the house on Monday. Grace and Jack were asked to join Will and Becky for dinner at a local restaurant on Tuesday. Mac got a promise out of Grace to join him for a ride on Wednesday. All the O’Malley women would be meeting for lunch on Thursday and invited Grace along. She was expected for dinner again the following Friday night and on Saturday they were all off to a rodeo in the next county. A friend of Luke’s was bareback riding and they were going along to support him.
“I’m exhausted just thinking about the week,” Grace confided as they drove away from the ranch.
Jack didn’t say anything for the longest time, causing Grace to look across at him and ask, “What’s up?”
“I’m sorry about Will. And Luke.”
“Don’t be. It’s touching that they care about your welfare.”
“Sometimes they care too much.”
Grace let it ride. Deep down she wished there was someone in the world who cared half as much about her.
Chapter Fourteen
Unfortunately, the evening didn’t end as well as it started.
Soon after inviting him up for coffee, Grace had Jack’s shirt half-off and was reaching for his belt buckle when her cell phone rang.
She was tempted to ignore it, but something niggled, so she glanced at the screen. It was Sally. She held up a finger to Jack and answered.
“Grace?” the other woman practically screeched.
“Yes, it’s me, Sally. What’s wrong?”
“It’s Aaron, my youngest. He’s having an asthma attack and nothing’s working! Please, please help me! I called 9-1-1, but they’re in Silver Springs and you’re much closer!”
Sally’s panic was palpable. Grace needed to calm her down.
“Iå’ll be there as soon as I can,” she said, then put the phone to her chest and asked Jack, “Can you take me to Harper’s Corner? Sally thinks her son is having an asthma attack.”
She returned her attention to the mother. “Just stay on the line, Sally, if that makes you feel better.”
Moments later, Jack had Betsy in gear, and they peeled out of the parking lot and headed out of town toward the community of Harper’s Corner. “I’m going to call the ambulance back on Jack’s phone, Sally. If the asthma protocols aren’t working, then it sounds like Aaron’s had an allergic reaction to something and I need to make sure they have an EpiPen. As soon as I’m done with them, I’ll be right back. We’ll be there as soon as we can. In the meantime, elevate his legs and cover him with a blanket.”
She called 9-1-1. After quickly explaining the situation to dispatch, she was put through to t
he ambulance, told them where she was going and checked that they had an EpiPen.
“Thank goodness you were there, Jack,” she said as she waited for Sally to come back to her phone.
“Grace?”
“The ambulance is on it’s way,” she assured the panicked mother. “And we’ll be there in...” She glanced across at Jack to get his input on how long it would take. “Two minutes,” she reported as Jack held up two fingers. “Just hang in there, honey.”
* * *
JACK GLANCED ACROSS at Grace as he heard her voice break on the last few words. Tears filled her eyes. “I’m so scared, Jack,” she confessed. “This little boy could die!”
Jack pressed Betsy’s accelerator to the floor, willing everything from his aged truck. He was already driving way over the speed limit, but it wouldn’t hurt to get as much as Betsy could give.
She didn’t handle so well on the turns as they sped toward Harper’s Corner, but Grace didn’t protest as—in spite of wearing a seat belt—she was flung from one side of the bench seat to the other.
“What street?” Jack demanded as they neared the tiny settlement of Harper’s Corner. It was in the opposite direction from Silver Springs and the hospital and ambulance center, so it was understandable that Sally had called Grace for help. The ambulance would be at least another five minutes away.
“Pine. Third house on the right. Her husband is waiting outside so we won’t miss it.”
Jack tore past the twenty-five-mile-an-hour sign as they arrived at Harper’s Corner and quickly located Pine Street. Shifting Betsy down, her gears shrieking at the harsh treatment, Jack took the corner onto Pine too fast. But Betsy was up to it and recovered.
“There!” Grace said, spotting Sally’s husband waving to them.
The man was whiter than a ghost as he opened Grace’s door almost before the truck had come to a standstill. She leaped out and followed him inside the house.
“Good girl,” Jack muttered, patting Betsy’s dash and cutting the engine. He sat still for a few minutes, catching his breath. He’d thought Betsy might rattle apart on some of those corners, but she’d made it. She’d proven herself yet again.