by Katie Lane
The doctor didn’t wait for Chester and Lucas to argue before he quickly headed for the door. “I’ll take care of getting a room.”
Once he was gone, Penny looked at Cru. “It’s all my fault. If I’d had Raul pick up the stove sooner, this never would’ve happened.”
The tears that shimmered in her eyes gutted Cru. “It’s not your fault. It’s mine. I was the one who should’ve been keeping an eye on things. I took over the cooking and warned Lucas about using the stove, but I should’ve known he couldn’t stay out of the kitchen.”
“Why would I stay out of my own damned kitchen?” Lucas said. “And I swear I lit the stove.”
“Then how did our kitchen blow up, you old coot?” Chester asked.
Lucas looked totally bewildered and his age-spotted hands started to shake. “I’m the reason our house burned down?”
Before Cru could step in and calm him, Chester did. “It ain’t a big thing, Lucas. We’ve lived through worse.” He grinned. “Remember when that bull almost stomped me to death? Or when that little señorita’s daddy filled your butt with buckshot when he found you sneaking out her window?”
Chester could usually tease Lucas out of a sad mood. But not this time. This time, he didn’t crack a smile. “But I blew up our home. I took away everything we own in this world. All because I was too mule-headed to accept that I don’t remember as good as I used to and should stay the hell out of the kitchen.” A tear trickled down his weathered cheek. It was too much for Cru. He knelt in front of the wheelchair and took Lucas’s hand.
“Chester is right. It’s not a big deal. Once you get the insurance money, you’ll be able to build a brand new house. Or maybe you’ll decide you want to use the money to head to Florida to a nice retirement community with no gas stoves or acres of land to have to deal with.”
The look Lucas and Chester exchanged said that wasn’t going to happen.
“We ain’t goin’ to Florida,” Chester said. “We’re Texas born and raised and this is where we’ll die. And about that insurance, we don’t have any. The company upped our premium so much last year, we figured we could do without it. I guess we was wrong.”
Cru really wanted to yell in frustration at the two stubborn fools. And Evie and Penny looked like they wanted to do the same. Instead, they all just remained speechless until the doctor and an orderly with another wheelchair came back in.
“Mr. and Mr. Diamond’s room is ready,” the doctor said.
“We don’t need no room,” Lucas said. “Just like I don’t need this contraption.” He lifted his foot with the black orthopedic boot. “It’s pure foolishness, is what it is. As were all those questions you asked me when I got here. What’s the date? What time is it? And do I know where I am? Of course, I know where I am. I’m in a damned hospital much too late.”
The doctor bit back a smile. “You’re right. But can you tell me the exact date?” When Lucas looked confused, the doctor asked other questions. Lucas could answer some, but not all. Which had him getting angry.
“I ain’t got that alls-heimers if that’s what you’re thinkin’.” He sounded mad, but it was easy to read the fear in his eyes.
The doctor must’ve read it too because he spoke in a gentle voice. “There are other reasons for memory loss, Mr. Diamond. Depression, medical conditions such as ear infections or thyroid and kidney disorders, medication side effects.”
Chester piped up. “I told you that you shouldn’t be mixing those old painkillers you had with that flu and cold medication or those sleeping pills.”
The doctor’s eyebrows lifted. “I’d like to get the name of those pain pills. I’d also like to run some other tests. But I’ll need you to stay the night.”
Lucas opened his mouth to argue, but Penny squeezed his shoulder. “Please, Lucas.” She glanced at Chester. “For me.”
Chester sniffed. “Well, I guess one night ain’t gonna hurt anything.” He looked at the doctor. “As long as we can stay in the same room.”
“That shouldn’t be a problem. But I’m afraid you’ll need to get in a wheelchair to go to the room. Hospital policy.” The orderly positioned the wheelchair next to the bed and started to help Chester into it, but he waved him away.
“I can get into a damned chair by myself!”
Once he was seated, the orderly pushed him toward the door and the doctor followed pushing Lucas. He paused at the doorway and turned to Cru. “I left a prescription for painkillers and some instructions on how to care for your stitches with the nurse. Be sure to get them before you leave.”
Cru nodded. “Thanks, Doc.”
As soon as the doctor left the room, Penny turned to him. “You’re hurt?”
“It’s nothing. Just a scratch.”
“It’s not just a scratch if you had to have stitches.” There were those concerned eyes again. Drilling a hole right through him. Making him want to reach out and touch her. He didn’t know how long they stood there looking at each other before Penny finally pulled her gaze away and glanced at her sister.
Evie was looking between them with a confused look. Penny might not have mentioned the kisses, but it looked like Evie had just put two and two together. Her eyes narrowed on Cru. He didn’t need the warning. It might’ve taken him a while, but he got it now. And as much as he wanted to argue that whatever had happened between him and Evie was fifteen years ago when they were just kids, he had dated enough women to realize it wouldn’t make a difference. You couldn’t share your kisses between sisters. It just didn’t work.
“It’s late, Evie,” Penny said, pulling her sister’s attention away from Cru. “You should get Clint from the waiting room and take him back to the ranch.” Who was Clint? Since he hadn’t been able to come back to the emergency room, he was probably Evie’s kid.
Evie glanced at Cru before giving her sister a hard look. “You won’t be long, will you?”
“No. I just want to make sure Chester and Lucas get to their room okay.”
While the Gardener sisters headed to the waiting room, Cru stopped by the nurses’ station to get the prescription and instructions. By the time he got to the waiting room, Evie and whoever Clint was were gone and Penny was waiting at the elevators. The doors pinged open and she stepped in. He thought she might ignore him, but she held open the door.
“Chester and Lucas are on the second floor.”
He hurried and got in the elevator. Once the doors were closed, an awkward silence reigned. He figured it was best to get things out in the open.
“Look, Penny, I’m sorry. I’m an idiot.”
She turned to him and her eyebrows lifted. “And you’re just figuring that out?”
He laughed. “You won’t give me an inch, will you?”
“That’s your problem. Too many women have given you an inch.”
He couldn’t argue the point. Which is probably why Penny intrigued him so much. “Fair enough. Anyway, I should’ve thought about the whole sister thing. I guess I just figured that it happened so long ago—I mean we were just kids having a little fun. It wasn’t like we were . . .” He let the sentence drift off as he searched for the right word. Penny supplied it.
“Lovers?” She stared at him with eyes that held anger and something he couldn’t quite read.
He held up his hands. “Okay, I get it. It doesn’t matter what we were. All that matters is I went after her first. So I’ll keep my distance.”
He expected her to show some sign of regret or disappointment. She didn’t. All she did was nod. The elevator doors opened on the second floor and she stepped out. Instead of following her, he remained in the elevator with his hand holding the door.
She glanced back. “Aren’t you coming?”
He shook his head. “You’ll do a better job then I can of making sure Chester and Lucas get settled. I think I’ll head on over to the hotel.”
She looked down at her scuffed boots. “Then I guess I’ll be seeing you around.”
He didn’t know w
hy this felt like goodbye. She was right. They would be seeing each other around. Simple was too small a town not to run into each other occasionally. But there would be no more kisses. No more starting something they couldn’t stop. And maybe that was why neither one of them seemed in a hurry to leave. He just stood there holding the door and she just stood there staring at her boots until a nurse walked up.
“Are you going down?”
“Yes.” Cru said and held the door as she stepped in.
The last things Cru saw before the doors closed were Penny’s sad eyes.
Chapter Eight
“Have you lost your mind, Penelope Anne Gardener?” Her father glared across the table at her. “There is no way I’m going to let those two old horse thieves stay in my house.”
“But they have nowhere else to go after they get out of the hospital, Daddy,” Penny said. “They have no family and their house is burned to the ground.”
“They can go to Dixon’s Boardinghouse in town.”
Penny stared him. “You don’t mean that. You wouldn’t send our neighbors to a hotel when we have plenty of room here.”
Her father took a sip of his coffee. “I would two ornery old men who refuse to sell their land to me even when they’re no longer herding cattle.”
“You don’t need any more land, Daddy.”
“A rancher can always use land, but I’m more interested in their water rights.”
“That’s pure selfish nonsense, Hank Gardener.” Sadie sailed into the dining room. The housekeeper wore her favorite lavender floral apron over a pink t-shirt and wrangler jeans. Her long steel-gray hair was pulled back in a barrette and her cheeks were flushed from cooking over a hot stove. She usually carried a tray filled with their breakfast: glasses of orange juice, bowls of oatmeal, and a plate of fresh fruit. But today, she carried a plate stacked high with iced cinnamon rolls.
Penny was surprised. Sadie hadn’t made cinnamon rolls for breakfast in years. Ever since she’d overheard Doctor Simpson getting after Daddy for his high cholesterol.
Sadie gave Penny’s father a stern look. “You are not going to send two old men who recently lost their home to Dixon’s Boardinghouse. Reba would do her best to take care of them, but she’s much too busy to keep a close eye. Here, there are plenty of people to watch out for them.” She smiled at Penny and held out the plate. “Have a cinnamon roll, honey. I baked them fresh this morning with plenty of brown sugar, butter, and pecans, then doused them in cream cheese frosting.”
Penny didn’t know what Sadie was up to, but she followed her lead and took a gooey roll off the top. “Mmm, they look delicious. Thank you.”
“You’re more than welcome.” Sadie turned to head back into the kitchen, but Penny’s father stopped her.
“Wait just one doggone minute, Sadie Truly,” he said. “You can’t just waltz in here with my favorite cinnamon rolls and not offer me one.”
Sadie turned and shot him a scathing look. “I won’t offer a cinnamon roll to a stubborn man who doesn’t know how to be neighborly.”
His eyes widened. “You’re bribing me with food to let those two ornery old men stay?”
“That’s exactly what I’m doing. And if you don’t let Chester and Lucas stay here, you’ll be cooking for yourself.”
Penny stifled her giggle behind a big bite of cinnamon roll, but her father still heard and glared at her. “You think this is funny, do you?”
“No, sir,” she said around her bite of gooey icing and fluffy bread.
“Well, I do.” Evie walked into the dining room in a pair of Penny’s pajamas. The sight of her sister here at the ranch where she belonged made Penny feel all warm and fuzzy inside—like all the pieces in the puzzle were fitting perfectly together.
“Good morning, Sadie.” Evie gave Sadie a kiss on the cheek. “How did your first day as the president of the ladies’ gardening club go?”
Penny had been so busy feeling guilty about kissing Cru and then worrying about the Double Diamond fire that she’d forgotten all about Sadie’s big day yesterday. Leave it to Evie to remember. She always remembered every important holiday and occasion. Especially family’s. And Sadie was family. After Daddy had hired her, she had become a second mother to the Gardener sisters. Since Evie loved cooking and baking, she and Sadie were especially close. And Penny often wondered if she had confided in Sadie about Clint’s father.
Sadie offered the plate of cinnamon rolls to Evie. “I must admit that I was a little nervous. Esther Tatum’s shoes are going to be hard to fill, but I think I did okay.”
“I’m sure you did more than okay,” Evie said. “You’re going to make a great president. Look how you keep up the ranch garden.” She helped herself to a cinnamon roll and took a big bite, closing her eyes in ecstasy. “Mmm, these are worth their weight in gold.” She glanced at Daddy and lifted an eyebrow. “Or letting Chester and Lucas stay here for a few days.”
Daddy’s eyebrow arched exactly like Evie’s. “It will take more than a few days to repair all the damage done to their house. And I will not be bribed in my own home, Evelyn Francine.” He waved a hand at Sadie. “Keep your cinnamon rolls, you ornery woman. I’m just fine with coffee.”
“Stubborn mule,” Sadie grumbled before she left the room.
Evie took the chair next to Penny. “She’s right, Daddy. You’re still as stubborn as ever.”
He sent Evie a stern look. “And you’re still as disrespectful as ever.”
“Didn’t you always teach us that respect must be earned?” Evie took another bite of her cinnamon roll as Penny cringed. Why did her sister always have to prod the bull? She quickly jumped into the conversation before it turned into an out-and-out argument.
“Aren’t you glad that Evie is here, Daddy? It’s been a while since we all sat down to breakfast together. I think the last time was at Christmas.”
He picked up the newspaper sitting next to his plate, snapped it open, and hid behind it. “That’s your sister’s fault, not mine.”
Evie glanced over at her and rolled her eyes.
“Don’t roll your eyes at me, Evelyn Francine.”
Evie glanced back at their father in surprise before she burst out laughing. Penny couldn’t help but join in. Their daddy stayed hidden behind the newspaper, but Penny couldn’t help noticing the suspicious rattling of the paper. Of course, when their father finally lowered it, his face was as stern as ever.
“Where’s Clint?”
“He’s sleeping in the guestroom.” Evie licked a smudge of frosting from her finger. “I thought I’d let him sleep a few minutes more before I wake him up to head back to Abilene.”
He lowered the paper. “You aren’t staying?”
“Are you forgetting that I have a job, Daddy? And Clint shouldn’t miss any more school than he has to.”
Penny wanted to argue that one missed day of school and work wouldn’t hurt. And seeing how it was Friday, they could stay the weekend. But then she remembered Clint had detention on Saturday morning so they’d have to head back soon anyway. She couldn’t help feeling disappointed their visit would be so short. Her father must’ve felt the same way. But as always, he showed his disappointment by using hateful words.
“That boy has become too citified. He shouldn’t be sleeping half the morning away like some bum.”
“He’s not a bum,” Evie snapped. “He’s a teenage kid. All teenagers like to sleep in.”
“Not if they have parents who teach them good values—like getting up early and getting their chores done.”
Evie threw down her napkin. “Are you calling me a bad parent, Daddy? Or are you just trying to justify working your daughters like mules when we were teenagers?”
His face turned red. “I never worked you like mules. I gave you jobs to teach you the value of hard work. Penny learned the lesson while you did everything you could to avoid it. Including running off with some boy and getting in trouble.”
Penny placed a hand on Evie’s
arm to keep her from jumping up and leaving. “That’s not true, Daddy. Evie worked just as hard as I did growing up. And even harder after she left. She put herself through college while being a single mother. Did you know she got a promotion at work? She’s now in charge of loans at the bank.”
He looked at Evie while Penny prayed. Just say you’re proud of her, Daddy. Please just say you’re proud of her. But before he could say anything, Clint walked in looking all sleep rumpled.
“Good morning, Grandpa.”
Daddy looked at Clint and his eyes softened like they never softened with Penny and Evie. At least not after his beloved wife had passed away. It was like the burden of taking care of his daughters had taken away his softer side. But he had no trouble showing it to his grandson. “Good morning yourself. Did you sleep well?”
“Yes, sir.” Clint took a chair next to his grandfather, completely unaware of the tension in the room. “Is that a cinnamon roll, Mom? Are there more?”
Evie handed him her plate. “I’m sure Sadie will bring you one, but you can have mine for now.” She glared at Daddy. “I’ve lost my appetite.”
Clint devoured the rest of the cinnamon roll in two bites and started talking. “Guess what, Grandpa. Chester and Lucas Diamond’s house blew up. When they stopped in the waiting room on their way to their room, they told me the entire story. There was this huge explosion that blew glass and splintered wood everywhere. A piece of that glass stuck right in Cru’s shoulder like a knife and he had to get fourteen stitches.”
“Fourteen stitches? But he said it was only a scratch.” The words popped out of Penny’s mouth before she could stop them. Everyone in the room turned to her, but Evie stared much more intently than Clint or Daddy. She had noticed Penny and Cru’s interaction at the hospital and had questioned Penny about it when they had been getting ready for bed the night before. Penny had lied and said nothing was going on between them, but Evie knew her well enough to issue a warning.