by Linda Warren
As a kid, he’d hated that Jake got to live here and he had to live in a cramped apartment. He’d never wanted to be friends, despite the fact that Jake was kind, taking his side when kids said cruel things. He didn’t need anyone to do that, though. He could take care of himself and he’d proved it time and time again by being tough, by being mean and rebellious.
Today he wasn’t feeling any of those things. He was feeling scared. Scared of emotions he didn’t know if he was ready to face.
But he’d promised Caroline.
“Drive around back to the garage,” Caleb said, removing his gun and locking it in the glove compartment.
Eli did as instructed and stopped not far from the garage. He removed his own gun, handed it to Caleb and took in the scene in front of him. Jake and Beau stood waiting under a basketball net attached to the garage. A dog, part Lab, lay at Jake’s feet. A bike with training wheels was off to the side, as was a tricycle, a couple of balls and a bat. Kids lived here—that was obvious. This was a home. A family lived here.
Eli drew a deep breath and got out of the vehicle. Jake took a couple of steps forward and paused. They stood staring at each other as their childhoods played before them like a reel from an old movie they’d watched over and over. Two boys with the same father—one who knew and one who didn’t.
“How’s the arm?” Jake asked.
Eli flexed his hand. “Great.”
Jake bent and picked up a basketball and dribbled it.
“Remember gym class? You could make a basket from center court with your eyes closed.”
Eli laid his hat on the hood of the car. “I still can.”
Jake threw the ball to him. He caught it deftly. Something about the movement, the action, released the tightness in his gut.
Caleb removed his hat. “What do you think, Beau? Can we take ’em in a game?”
“Sure,” Beau replied, removing his suit jacket. “We’re younger, so we have an advantage.”
Eli dribbled the ball, then leaped into the air, sending the ball sailing right into the hoop. Jake grabbed the ball and jumped, making another basket.
Beau and Caleb got in on the action, playing defense, and they ran, laughed and joked until they were exhausted. Beau finally slipped and lay sprawled on the concrete, sweat stains on his starched white shirt.
Jake looked down at him. “Get up, you wimp.”
“I don’t think I can. I’m completely spent.”
“That’s because you sit in an office all day,” he told him. “You need more exercise.” He reached down and jerked Beau to his feet.
Breathing heavily, Beau said to Caleb, “I think they kicked our butts.”
Caleb grinned. “Do I need to take you to the emergency room?”
“That’s not funny, little brother. I’ll get my second wind in a minute.” Beau took several deep breaths. “I didn’t get much sleep last night.”
“Hot date, huh?” Caleb joked.
Beau wiped his brow. “Don’t I wish. Macy talked me into keeping one of her strays again. I swear she picks up every abandoned animal she comes across. She found this small kitten that was starving, and since she works nights, she didn’t want to leave the kitten alone. She said it would be very quiet. Wrong. The thing whined half the night, and when I closed her in the utility room, she scratched at the door.”
Caleb put his arm around Beau. “Do you want me to teach you how to say no to Macy?”
“I don’t think the woman knows the meaning of the word.”
Caleb raised an eyebrow. “How long has she been talking you into pet-sitting? Don’t you think it’s time you asked the woman out on a date?”
“Are you out of your mind?” Beau shook off Caleb’s arm. “She drives me nuts within five minutes. I certainly don’t want to spend a whole evening with her.”
“Beau,” Caleb sighed. “She’s lives in the condo next to yours. You see her every day. You see her more than you see your own family.”
Eli didn’t know who Macy was, but evidently she was someone Beau had known for a long time.
Caleb filled him in. “Macy grew up in our neighborhood. She’s much younger than us and was always knocking on our door, looking for a home for some cat or dog she’d found. She had a houseful and her parents wouldn’t let her have any more. Old Beau was a sucker for those big blue eyes. He still is.”
“Shut up, Caleb.” Beau was now able to breathe normally and he was getting angry.
Jake turned to Eli. “We’ll let these two continue this fascinating conversation. Would you like to see the farm?”
“I’d love to.”
They fell into step and headed for the barn. The dog trotted ahead.
“As a kid, I used to dream of being here,” Eli said, surprising himself.
“As a kid, I used to dream of running away from here,” Jake replied.
“Did you?” Eli was shocked.
“All the time, but Aunt Vin was here and I didn’t want to leave her.” They stopped by a big John Deere tractor.
“She’s dad’s sister and she lives with us. She can’t wait to meet you.”
Eli didn’t know if he was ready to meet one of Joe McCain’s other relatives. He’d only planned to meet the sons.
“It’ll be painless,” Jake said, noticing his expression.
“How about a tractor ride?”
“Sure.”
They climbed into the big closed-in cab of the tractor. The dog jumped onto the hitch, then onto the wheel and into the cab. He obviously knew his way around a tractor.
“That’s Wags.” Jake rubbed the dog’s head. “He’s Ben’s dog and he follows me around until Ben comes home. Elise is picking him up from school. I hope you’ll stay until they get back.”
With a turn of a key, the tractor roared to life, preventing Eli from answering. He wasn’t sure how long he was staying, but his attention was diverted to the farm and the view from a tractor.
The endless cotton fields soon gave way to cornfields, where workers were busy tending to the crops.
“We’ll harvest the corn pretty soon. It should be a good year,” Jake said. “We had just enough rain and sunshine. Sometimes I’m not so lucky.”
“But you’re able to make a living?”
“Yeah, and that’s great because farming is all I’ve ever done.”
They rolled back to the barn and Jake turned off the engine.
“I used to think of this place as heaven—a place where a happy family lived.” The words came out before Eli could stop them.
Jake faced him. “It was more like hell. Joe McCain abused my mother and he made me think it was her fault. When she finally got the courage to leave, I refused to go because I believed all the lies he’d told me. I didn’t speak to her again until I was thirty-eight years old. I hated her for leaving me and for what I believed she’d done.”
“Caleb said that Joe refused to admit Caleb was his?”
“He said that Andrew Wellman was Caleb’s father and I believed it.” Jake looked out across the fields. “I wouldn’t have anything to do with my mother or Caleb until three years ago. That’s a long time to harbor hatred.”
“But you have a good relationship with Caleb now?”
Jake’s gaze swung back to him. “Yes, and with my mother. I’m thankful for that. Is your mom still living?”
“No. She died when I was nineteen.”
“I’m sorry.”
Eli rested his elbows on his knees, his hands clasped together. “She never got over Joe McCain.”
“When your mother left town, Joe stayed drunk all the time. Aunt Vin and I had to go get him several times from the bar because he was causing a scene, calling Vera’s name. I blamed his drinking on my mother, but I think he really cared for Vera and missed her.”
Eli took a deep breath. “She finally realized he wasn’t going to marry her and she wanted to make a life for me, but by then I was happy with Uncle Jess and Aunt Amalie. She agreed to let me stay, and i
t was probably the best thing she ever did for me. She worked in Houston for a while, then Dallas, then Beaumont, and finally settled in a small town on the coast. But she was never happy except when she was in Waco with him.”
Silence filled the cab.
“I’m glad you found a good home,” Jake finally said.
“The very best,” Eli answered in a quiet voice.
“I never knew what happened to you. I figured that, after stealing the principal’s car, you’d end up in reform school.”
Eli grinned. “Now that was stupid, wasn’t it?”
Jake grinned back. “Nobody but Elijah Coltrane would do something like that. Nobody had that much nerve.”
“I think it was a cry for help.”
“I’m glad your life turned out so well,” Jake said. “And that you didn’t end up in reform school.”
“Me, too.”
Wags whined and pawed at the door.
“Okay.” Jake rose and they got out of the cab. “Somehow Wags knows it’s time for Ben and Katie to come home.”
“Maybe I should be going,” Eli said, thinking he’d shared enough for one day.
“Please stay,” Jake replied. At Eli’s silence, he added, “It’s time to put our rotten childhoods behind us. We had no control over them, but we do have control of the future. It’s time to be adults, to be men and to be brothers. Because whether you like it or not, we are.”
Eli still didn’t speak.
“I hated for so many years that it was eating away at my soul. Beau kept at me, though, trying to make me listen, trying to get me to build a relationship with my mother and Caleb. But I stubbornly refused until I was brought to my knees over Ben’s kidnapping. Then I needed my mom.” He took a breath. “You’re the strongest person I’ve ever met and I know you’re fine on your own, but I hope you’ll let us share a small part of your life.” He held out his hand.
Eli stared at it, the past and the present battling inside him. He felt it all—the little boy who desperately wanted a father, the kid that defied everyone, the teenager learning to like himself and respect others, and the man who still yearned for family. From out of nowhere he saw Caroline’s face and could hear her voice.
You can do it. They’re blood. They’re family.
Suddenly the past released its grip and receded into his memory. He had family, as Tuck had reminded him many times, and now he was ready to accept them without feeling any guilt about Ma, Pa and Tuck. The McCains would be an extension of that family, as Caroline had told him. It was time for forgiveness. It was time….
He reached for Jake’s hand and suddenly they were hugging, holding on tight. Caleb and Beau joined them, and the four men stood with their arms around each other, letting go, accepting and bonding as brothers.
Wags jumped up and down, barking, and they finally drew apart. “I think we know what time it is.” Jake wiped a tear from his eyes.
“Ben and Katie are home,” Beau answered in a hoarse voice.
Eli glanced up the road, knowing there were tears in his eyes, too, and he didn’t bother to brush them away. A Suburban drove into the garage and Wags raced for the house.
“You’re not leaving,” Jake told him. “You have to meet my wife and kids.”
Eli nodded, not trusting his voice, and they made their way to the garage. He watched as a very pretty blond woman got out and opened a back door. After a moment, Ben and Katie jumped out, hugged Wags and came running toward Jake, crying, “Daddy, Daddy, Daddy.”
Jake ran to meet them, grabbing them both at the same time, holding Ben in one arm and Katie in the other. “How are my babies?” He kissed Ben, then Katie.
“Fine,” Ben said.
“Did you have a good day at school?”
“Yes, but Ms. Taylor said…” Ben glanced at his mother. He could see Elise mentally urging him to finish the sentence. “That…that school will be out soon. I don’t want school to end. I like school.”
“We’re going to Disney World, remember?”
“Yeah,” Ben said, his brown eyes growing big.
The only time Eli had seen Ben was the day he’d rescued him from the mobile home. He’d only had a glimpse of him as his biological mother had pushed him out the window. Ben looked healthy and happy now, and Eli knew it was because of Jake and Elise’s love and care.
“What did you do at Granny Althea’s?” Jake asked Katie.
Eli’s eyes were glued to the little girl. She was about the prettiest thing he’d ever seen, with her blond pigtails and her big brown eyes.
“We cooked all day ’cause Granny said someone special was coming.”
“Did you?”
Katie nodded. “Is he here, Daddy?”
Eli realized she was talking about him, and he was thrown for a second, but he didn’t have time to respond because Elise walked up and kissed her husband. Katie and Ben slid to the ground.
“Eli, this is my wife, Elise.” Jake made the introduction.
She smiled and shook his hand. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”
“I’m sorry,” he found himself saying. “It’s taken me awhile.”
“We understand,” she said, and he realized that they did.
Caleb put his arm around Elise’s waist and kissed her cheek. “How’s my favorite sister-in-law?”
“Great, Caleb. It’s good to have you home.”
Beau kissed her other cheek. “How about me?”
“You I see all the time, and you’re spoiling my kids rotten, but I love you anyway.”
“Will you two get away from my wife?” Jake teased. “I wish you’d find wives of your own.”
Amid the resulting laughter, Ben tugged on his dad’s hand. Jake bent down to hear what he had to say, then straightened. “Eli, I’m so sorry. I forgot to introduce you to my children. This is Ben and Katie, and kids, this is my brother Eli.”
Ben stepped forward and held out his hand. “Nice to meet you, sir,” he said.
Eli took the little boy’s hand. It seemed so fragile in his big one. “Nice to meet you, too.”
“You’re my daddy’s brother so…so—” he glanced at his mother, and Elise nodded “—you’re my uncle, like Beau and Caleb.”
Eli swallowed the constriction in his throat. “Yes. I am.”
“I got lots of uncles now.”
Beau ruffled Ben’s hair. “You sure do.”
Before Eli could catch his breath, Katie stepped in front of Ben and curtsied. “Nice to meet you. Welcome to our home.” She looked up at Eli. “I ’posed to kiss you but I can’t reach way up there.”
Eli lifted her in his arms. She felt light as a feather and as precious as anything he’d ever touched, and when she kissed his cheek, he melted.
“Me and Granny Althea practiced all day. Did I do good?”
“You did wonderfully,” Elise said before Eli could.
“Yes. You did very well,” he added, feeling a lump in his throat.
Caleb hugged Ben. “While I’m here, do you want to throw the ball, champ?”
“Okay, okay. I get it.” Ben ran and picked up a baseball from the grass. “I can throw good now, can’t I, Daddy?”
“Like a champion.”
Caleb walked off into the grass and turned. “Okay, Ben. Toss me the ball.”
The boy raised his arm and threw. The ball landed midway between him and Caleb.
Caleb picked it up. “Here it comes. Try to catch it.” He threw the ball gently, but Ben’s hands came together after the ball landed at his feet.
“Again,” Ben said, not discouraged, and tried to throw the ball back. But again it landed short of its mark.
Without thinking, Eli walked over and squatted behind the child. “Don’t watch Caleb, Ben. Watch the ball. Just keep your eye on the ball. Okay?”
“Okay.”
Eli nodded to Caleb.
“Watch the ball,” he repeated.
Ben bit his tongue in concentration, and the ball spiraled, almost in s
low motion, directly to him. He caught it clumsily, but the ball was in his hands.
“Yay, Ben!” Katie shouted.
Ben kept staring at the ball as if he couldn’t believe he’d caught it.
Eli glanced at Jake and Elise. Elise had tears in her eyes and Jake’s face held pure joy. Evidently this was something Ben had been trying to do for a long time.
“I caught it, Daddy. I caught it.” Ben’s voice rose in excitement.
“You sure did, son.”
Eli knelt in the grass. “Now let’s throw it back to Caleb.” He wrapped his fingers around Ben’s forearm. “Make a fist. Let me feel your muscle.”
Ben looked at him blankly, and Eli realized he didn’t understand. “Like this.” He made a fist to show him.
“Oh.” Ben curled his little fingers in a tight knot.
“Oh, yeah,” Eli said, squeezing the small arm. “I feel those muscles. When you throw the ball, use them instead of your wrist. Do you understand?”
“I think,” Ben said, frowning.
Eli squeezed again. “This is your muscle. Use it for strength.”
“Okay.” The boy nodded vigorously.
“Now reach back.” Eli demonstrated. “Make those muscles work to send the ball where you want it to go.”
Eli held his breath, so badly wanting for Ben to succeed.
The child bit his lip, reached back and threw the ball as hard as he could. It sailed through the air directly toward Caleb, who took a step forward to catch it. Ben’s eyes grew enormous and he looked at his parents.
Elise couldn’t contain herself—she ran over and kissed Ben. “You did it. I’m so proud of you.”
“I threw it, Mommy. I threw it a long way.”
“Yes. You did.”
Jake hugged him. “I told you one day you’d do it.”
“’Cause I got muscles, Daddy. Look.” He held up his tiny arm. “I got big muscles.”
“You sure do,” Jake replied.
Beau and Caleb ruffled his hair and teased him, but Ben kept smiling.
Eli got to his feet and Ben looked up at him. “Thank you, Uncle Eli.”
“You welcome, Ben. Just remember to use those muscles.”
“Oh! Oh!” The boy jumped up and down. “We got something for you.”
“Let’s continue this in the house,” Jake said.