Sweet Home Colorado (The O'Malley Men)

by C. C. Coburn

  Since the child’s father had disappeared into the house with Grace, there was no one to meet the ambulance, so he flicked on Betsy’s hazard lights, found his flashlight in the glove box and got out.

  * * *

  SALLY’S FACE WAS streaked with tears as she sat on the floor of the living room holding her child against her. Dex held his son’s legs elevated as Grace had instructed.

  Fortunately, Grace had managed to regain her composure by the time she knelt in front of Sally to check the boy’s vitals.

  Aaron was displaying all the outward symptoms of a severe asthma attack. Pale, sweaty face, blue lips, nostrils flaring and wheezing as he fought for his breath and then tried to exhale it. His pulse was rapid and he was almost unconscious.

  “Nothing was working!” Sally wailed, and Grace knew she was talking about the bronchodilators prescribed for asthmatics. “Why wouldn’t they work?”

  Grace could only shake her head and say, “You did everything right, Sally. I think he’s had an allergic reaction. Does he have any food allergies?”

  Sally said no, and Grace gently turned the child over and lifted his pajama top, running her hands over his back, feeling for any bites. As she reached his shoulder, she felt something rough caught in the fabric. She grasped it and brought out a bee.

  “I think we’ve found our culprit,” Grace said, as she searched for the wound, found it and removed the stinger. Unless the ambulance arrived soon, Aaron’s life was in grave danger.

  Sally wrung her hands, saying, “I wish I’d never had that stupid dream of raising my kids outside the confines of town!”

  “Don’t go blaming yourself,” Grace said, trying to keep the panic from her voice as she continued to monitor the child.

  “Is he going to die?” Sally asked, her own voice almost a whisper.

  “Not if I can help it,” Grace said.

  Then Aaron stopped breathing.

  * * *

  OUTSIDE, JACK COULD hear the wail of the ambulance. He ran to the end of the street, swinging his flashlight to attract their attention. Spotting him, the ambulance screamed through town and turned into Pine Street.

  It pulled up behind Betsy, her hazard lights still flashing. Two paramedics leaped out and grabbed medical kits from the rear. The noise had woken several neighbors who now crowded around, curious.

  “This way!” Jack shouted to the paramedics as he led them through the front gate. Grace was on her knees giving the boy mouth-to-mouth. The mother and father were clinging to each other, crying.

  One of the paramedics knelt on the floor beside Grace and opened his kit.

  “EpiPen?” Grace gasped between breaths. One of the paramedics handed it to her, she released the blue safety cap and plunged it into the child’s thigh, watching for any change in Aaron’s condition. Then she moved aside so the paramedics could fit an oxygen mask on his face.

  Aaron moaned and his eyes flickered open.

  * * *

  “YOU LOOK EXHAUSTED,” Jack said as he pulled up at Grace’s apartment.

  “I am.” She rubbed her eyes and smiled across at him. “It’s been quite a night.”

  “You were amazing.”

  “No more amazing than you and Betsy giving your all.”

  “And you’re way too modest.”

  Grace shrugged. “Anyone with training could’ve saved Aaron,” she said, wanting to downplay the situation.

  “I’ll take you upstairs.” Jack cut the ignition and, with a hand under Grace’s elbow, walked up the steps with her.

  In their haste they’d both forgotten to lock the door—not that it mattered. Break-ins were rare in Spruce Lake.

  “Home, sweet home,” Grace muttered as she walked inside and turned to Jack, ready to thank him for all his help.

  But he took her in his arms and kissed her, sending warmth through her body. She lifted her hands to rest on his shoulders, then slid them down his back, loving the feel of hard muscle beneath his shirt.

  Jack kissed her long and hard, then drew back. “Good night, Grace,” he said, releasing her abruptly. “Sleep tight.” And before she could protest, he was gone.

  Head spinning, confused by Jack’s hasty departure, Grace staggered into her bedroom. Dog-tired, she tumbled onto the bed, scrunched a pillow beneath her head and was asleep within moments.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Grace didn’t stir until nearly noon. Feeling half-doped, she flopped onto her back and stared at the ceiling, allowing the events of the previous night to play in her head.

  She’d promised Sally she’d look in on Aaron today. A mother’s love for and devotion to her child was a wondrous thing. Aaron couldn’t have a better mom and she needed to tell Sally that. The poor woman blamed herself that Aaron’s medications hadn’t worked, but none of it was her fault.

  Grace reached for her purse where she’d dropped it by the bed and drew out the photo of her daughter. Maybe it was time to write and ask for a more recent shot. Trying to guess what Amelia looked like now was tearing Grace apart. Maybe being so close to Jack had Grace thinking of her more often, wondering which of them she took after.

  She might have come to Spruce Lake on an impulse, but now that she was here, she was determined to make up for not keeping in better touch with Aunt Missy while she was alive. She’d confided in Missy about her pregnancy and the old lady had been delighted that Grace had named her daughter Amelia, after her. And not once had she passed judgment on Grace’s decision to give the baby away.

  The house was now her daughter’s legacy. Missy would enjoy the irony that it was Amelia’s parents who were bringing it back to life together.

  Shaking away her thoughts, Grace replaced the photo, then undressed and stepped into the shower.

  After putting on denim shorts, a camisole top and a chambray shirt, with the buttons undone, she scooped her hair into a ponytail and set to work cleaning her tiny apartment.

  It didn’t take more than half an hour. She sat on her sofa and looked around. What to do now? The weekend stretched in front of her, long and lonely. She could always lie down and catch a few more z’s, she supposed, but then she wouldn’t sleep tonight. What she really needed was caffeine.

  As if he had read her mind, she heard a knock, followed by Jack’s voice calling through her door. “Wake up, sleepyhead, I’ve got coffee.”

  When Grace opened the door, her heart skipped a beat.

  Jack stood there smiling, more masculine and desirable than ever. He held two take-out cups. She grinned and stood back to let him enter. “What’s up?”

  “Wanted to see how you were doing. And to invite you for a picnic.”

  “To check out the wildflowers on the mountains?” she asked, and took a sip of coffee, enjoying the caffeine rush. Spending time in nature was something she planned on doing a lot of here. So far she’d only managed to smell the flowers spilling out of the many planter boxes in town.

  “I thought you might like to come to my cabin.”

  Now that was an invitation she couldn’t refuse. “Sure! Let me get a blanket. I saw one stored in the closet.”

  “No need, I’ve got everything at my place.”

  “Can I bring anything else?”

  “Nope, just you and your coffee.”

  “Sounds like a plan,” Grace said, grabbing her purse and keys.

  As Jack drove down Main Street, she called Sally.

  “Oh, Grace! I don’t know what we would have done without you last night,” she said. “I’m sure we would have lost our little boy!”

  “How is he this morning?” Grace asked.

  “Aaron’s fine. He’s still in the hospital under observation, and while he’s there, Dex and I are checking houses to rent in Silver Springs. We’re determined to move as close to the hospital as possible. I couldn’t go through last night again.

  “Jack’s given us a few rental leads. I’m starting to feel like we’re a part of the community, and I really like that feeling.”

>   “I’m glad to hear it, Sally. If you need anything, or have any concerns, just give me a call and I’ll be right over.”

  “Thank you! I don’t know what I’d do without you, Grace.”

  Embarrassed by the heartfelt praise, Grace said, “You concentrate on finding somewhere that’ll suit your family, okay?”

  “Sure. Have a great picnic with Jack!”

  Grace had said her goodbyes before she realized that Sally already knew about Jack’s agenda for the day.

  “Everything all right?” he asked, turning at a fork in the road that Grace knew led to a valley farther from town than Two Elk.

  “Fine. She told me to have a great picnic.”

  Jack grinned. “I have a confession. The picnic wasn’t all my idea.”

  “Really?” Grace said with a chuckle.

  “Sally called earlier today asking if I knew of any rental properties in Silver Springs, since she and Dex decided they need to live closer to the hospital. She suggested I take you on a picnic.”

  “So none of this was your idea?” Grace teased.

  “The coffee was. And the location of the picnic.”

  Grace sat back and took in the scenery as the valley unfolded. “Fair enough,” she said, and sipped her coffee. “You seem to have a lot of contacts around this area.”

  Jack tilted his head in acknowledgment. “Happens when you’ve lived somewhere pretty much all your life.”

  Grace pondered that remark. How different her upbringing had been from Jack’s. He’d had the stability of a large, close-knit family and a beautiful home on a ranch, while her small family—if you could call it that—had drifted from one state to the next, never putting down roots for long. And although she’d spent the past dozen years living in Boston, it still didn’t really feel like home to Grace.

  She straightened, startled at the realization.

  “What’s up?” Jack asked.

  She glanced across at him. He looked so comfortable, one arm draped casually over Betsy’s steering wheel, the other resting on the window frame. The wind ruffled his hair, and he looked relaxed, at home. Safe.

  Something clawed at Grace, deep inside. She felt the urge to curl up at Jack’s side. Have him wrap an arm around her, draw her closer. Tell her he’d never let her go.

  “Are you okay, sweetheart?”

  Grace snapped out of her reverie. Had Jack just called her sweetheart? Was that an endearment she wanted to hear? Or not?

  Jack turned off the road and onto a dirt track, then pulled over.

  “Are we here?” Grace asked, looking at the pine forest around them.

  “No. But you seem a bit spaced out. What’s wrong?”

  The concern in his voice touched her in the place where longing resided—the longing she tried so hard to repress.

  No one was ever concerned about her. She was concerned about others, cared about others, cared for others! Grace’s job, her life, wasn’t a two-way street. She rarely took anything for herself. No time out, no life, no love. Yet here was Jack, causing those longings to surface and demand attention.

  “Grace?”

  She unfastened her seat belt and scooted across the seat to snuggle up to him. “Hold me. Just hold me, Jack,” she said, unable to articulate anything more than that.

  Silently, Jack complied, tucking her shoulder beneath his arm and wrapping the other protectively around her.

  Grace closed her eyes and drew in a slow breath, then let it out. For the first time in too many years, she felt truly at peace.

  They sat like that for long minutes, Jack holding her, imparting his strength and his warmth. He stroked her hair. “What’s up?” he finally asked again.

  “Just feeling sorry for myself and in need of a hug.”

  “Want to talk about it?”

  Grace eased out of Jack’s embrace and looked up at him. She wouldn’t burden him with her secrets, the things she’d kept to herself all her life. Particularly the secret involving him. “Not at the moment.” She fixed her gaze on the windscreen. “Thanks for the offer, though.”

  Grace could feel his eyes on her before he started Betsy up and they continued along the dirt road. Eventually the forest thinned and they crossed a creek.

  As Betsy heaved from side to side on the rough bridge over river stones, Grace said, “You sure like to take a girl to interesting places.”

  “Only special girls,” Jack said quietly.

  “How many special girls?” she asked, unable to stop herself.

  “Just one.”

  Wistfully, she asked, “What was her name?”

  “Grace.”

  “You mean me?”

  “I don’t see any other Grace, do you?”

  “I...thought you would’ve brought a lot of girls out here.”

  “Why would you think that?”

  Flustered, she said, “Oh, for heaven’s sake, Jack, you’re the most eligible bachelor in Spruce Lake!”

  “Excuse me?”

  Grace’s attention was diverted by the small cabin that came into view. “Is this your house?” she asked, sitting forward. “It’s adorable!”

  * * *

  DISTRACTED, JACK COULD only smile. Confronted by his simple abode, a renovated miner’s shack, Grace seemed enchanted.

  “I don’t know that it qualifies as a house, but yes, it’s what I call home. One of these days, I’m going to build something more substantial on this lot, but for now, it works for me.”

  “One of these days?” Grace said. “One of these days when you marry and have children?”

  He cut the engine and looked across at her. “That’s the plan, yes.”

  Her light brown eyes clouded and she turned away. “Whoever marries you, Jack, will be a very lucky woman.”

  The comment sliced right through Jack’s heart. Grace didn’t think she’d be that woman.

  Resolved that somehow, some way, he would change her mind, Jack helped her out the driver’s side.

  “It was a burned-out shell when I got it. I had some of the guys labor on this whenever we had a break between contracts. It was quite an eye-opener for them to work on such a wreck, especially since one of them had been arrested for arson.”

  “Did he spend time in jail for it?”

  “No, Kyle was only fourteen at the time, but he went to juvie. A contact back in L.A. recommended him to me when he got out. It was a good project for him to understand the damage caused by arson, even though no one was living here at the time.” He opened the door and let Grace in ahead of him. “No one worked harder on this project than that kid. It was as if he needed to atone for his sins. He slept under the stars and worked from dawn till late every day. He learned a lot about carpentry—and himself.”

  Grace wondered if she could ever atone for her own sins. There were so many. How she’d even start to make amends for keeping her secret from Jack, she had no idea.

  “Where is he now?”

  “He’s an apprentice plumber with one of the contractors I use. You might meet him at Adam’s house tomorrow.”

  At her frown, he explained. “In spite of Adam’s assurances that Carly wants to stay in town, I’d like to get their place at least weather-tight before winter. I was hoping you’d like to come along. Kyle and a couple of the guys will be there. For some strange reason they enjoy spending some of their weekends with my family.”

  Grace laughed at that. “Who wouldn’t want to spend time with your family? They’re wonderful. And so is this,” Grace said, indicating the cabin. “You’re not going to demolish it when you build the bigger house, are you?”

  “Nope. I’ll keep it for guests. Maybe emergency housing for kids in need.” He shrugged. “I haven’t thought that far ahead. Not much point, since I can’t find anyone to marry me.”

  Jack lifted a hand to her cheek. “Actually, I have found her. Unfortunately, she doesn’t want to marry me.”

  “What do you want from me, Jack?”

  “I want you to marry
me.”

  “That’s a very strange way to ask.”

  “Would it help if I got down on one knee?”

  “No.”

  “Didn’t think so.”

  “Can we make a pact to forget about talk of marriage and just enjoy ourselves today?”

  “Okay. But I want you to know it’s never far from my thoughts.”

  “Jack, I’m sorry, but I didn’t come back to Spruce Lake to get into a relationship. I left Boston to get away from one.”

  “And you succeeded. Come and live here. Marry me.”

  Grace walked farther into the cabin, then turned to him. “I wish I hadn’t messed everything up, Jack. I was so ambitious, so desperate to get away from my parents and the unhappy memories of my childhood. I needed to show them I was better than them, that I would never want for money or respect.” She gestured helplessly and Jack’s heart went out to her. “If I could take it all back, start my life over, I’d do things so differently.”

  Moved—and a little puzzled—by her revelation, he opened the fridge and pulled out sandwich fixings.

  “I don’t feel hungry now, if you don’t mind, Jack.”

  He faltered. Maybe he was part of the bad memories she wanted to escape.

  “Should I take you back to town?”

  “No, I want to be with you, but please, can we not talk about us?”

  “Okay,” he said, relieved, and desperate not to upset her further. “How about if we make these sandwiches and take them on a hike? The view from the mountain is spectacular. You’ll have an appetite by the time we climb up there.”

  “I could be dead by the time we climb up there! Remember, I was at sea level less than a week ago. I haven’t adapted to the altitude yet.”

  “Then I’ll piggyback you to the top.”

  Grace laughed and Jack reveled in the sound of it. “Watch out! I may take you up on it.”

  Jack shrugged and smiled. “I have strong shoulders.”

  He noticed the way Grace’s eyes shifted from his face to his shoulders, and turned back to the fridge to hide his reaction to her.