Love Inspired January 2016, Box Set 1 of 2

by Carolyne Aarsen

  “Slow down, soldier,” Vanessa called out as she got out of her car behind him. “Let me help you.”

  He tried not to cringe as he kept going, tucking his chin into his jacket against the cold, trying to banish the picture of Vanessa standing beside Chloe, their differences so obvious.

  Chloe with her sweet, gentle smile. Vanessa with her overly loud voice and tactless attitude. He knew he shouldn’t compare, but he couldn’t help himself.

  Vanessa hurried ahead of him as he struggled up the stairs to the covered veranda that wrapped around the Colonial-style house. “You know, I can never figure out which of these doors to use,” she muttered as she grabbed the handle of one of the double doors. She pulled it open just as Grady came close, and the door connected with his leg.

  He bit down on a cry as he stumbled, his crutch slipping out and away.

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to hit you.” Vanessa clutched his arm as he regained his balance, pain shooting up his leg and clouding his vision.

  He rode it out, then shook off her hand, frustrated at his helplessness. “I’m okay. Please.”

  “I’m just trying to help you,” she complained as he fitted his crutch back under his arm. “You don’t need to get all huffy.”

  “Sorry,” he said, unable to say more than that as he stumped into the entrance of the house. As Vanessa closed the door behind them, heat washed over him blended with the scent of supper baking and his frustration eased away.

  He was home.

  Beyond the foyer a fire crackled in the stone fireplace that was flanked by large leather couches. He wanted nothing more than to sink into their welcoming depths, close his eyes and forget everything that had happened to him the past few years. The war. The secret mission he and his team had been sent on and the hard consequences.

  He just wanted to find the simple in life again.

  But the sound of a baby crying upstairs broke the peace of the moment and reminded him of his obligations and how complicated his newly civilian life would be.

  “Grady? Vanessa? Are you home?” his grandmother called out from somewhere in the house.

  Vanessa sauntered past him to the living room, ignoring his grandmother’s question.

  Just as Grady shucked off his heavy winter coat, his grandmother came down the stairs toward him, carrying Cody, who was fussing and waving his chubby arms.

  In spite of knowing Cody wasn’t his, it wasn’t hard to see the resemblance. The little boy’s brown eyes and sandy hair were exact replicas of his and Ben’s, and he looked identical to Grady and Ben when they were babies.

  He could see how people might believe he was the father. That Chloe might believe he was bothered him more than he cared to admit.

  “Is he okay?” Grady asked, hobbling over to his grandmother, the injury in his leg making itself known as he faltered.

  “He’s just fussy. Missing his mom, I think.” Mamie Stillwater shot a meaningful glance over her shoulder at Vanessa, who was now lounging on the couch leafing through a magazine she had bought on their way back from the hospital.

  Vanessa must have caught the tone in Mamie’s voice, however, because she shot to her feet, her hands out for Cody. “Hey, sweetie,” she cooed, taking him from Mamie’s arms and walking back to the living room. “Did you miss your momma?”

  “Can I get you something to drink? Some coffee? Hot chocolate?” his grandmother asked him, her eyes still on Vanessa who sat on the couch again.

  “Coffee would be great,” he said.

  “I’m fine,” Vanessa said to her, then turned to Grady with a coy smile and patted the couch beside her. “Come and sit down, soldier,” she said.

  Grady hesitated, then walked over, wavering between politeness and his own struggles with Vanessa. Though he knew Cody wasn’t his child, he was clearly Ben’s and therefore his nephew. However, Vanessa didn’t seem very motherly.

  His thoughts whirled as he struggled to find the peace that had been eluding him for the past few years. Ever since that hay bale had fallen on his father and injured his back, Grady’s home life had spun out of control. His father’s chronic pain had created tension, which had led to fights, which finally had sent his mother away.

  Living with his father had been difficult before; it had become almost impossible after the accident. Reuben Stillwater had turned into a bitter, angry and critical man.

  Grady, who had often wanted to leave the ranch and Little Horn, saw his chance when he met with a recruitment officer from the army at high school. As soon as he’d graduated, he’d joined the army looking for discipline and order. He desired adventure and an escape from Little Horn. He had joined special ops, wearing his green beret with pride.

  But escape had resolved the issue only temporarily. Running special ops in Afghanistan had drained him. Had created an increasing yearning for home. When he’d been injured that horrible day, he’d known his career was over.

  However, coming back to the ranch to discover a woman he neither admired nor desired was telling everyone he had fathered her child wasn’t the vision he’d held in his head during the lonely nights in Kandahar, Afghanistan. He had longed for the open spaces of the ranch, the simplicity of working with cattle and horses.

  As he leaned back and glanced at Cody gurgling his pleasure in Vanessa’s arms, a picture of Chloe flashed in his head. She looked as pretty as ever. Prettier if that was even possible, with a simple charm he remembered from their youth.

  As if someone like her would look at someone like you, he reminded himself.

  “He sure knows his mommy,” Vanessa said, tickling the little boy under his chin. “Don’t you, darling?”

  His grandmother returned with two steaming mugs of coffee. She set down one within arm’s reach of Grady and settled herself on the large leather couch across from them both, her eyes on Vanessa and the baby.

  “Busy happenings in the county today,” Mamie said, her gaze flicking from Vanessa, still absorbed with Cody, to Grady sipping his coffee. “Yesterday Tom Horton discovered a couple of his brand-new ATVs were stolen.”

  “They figure the same people who’ve been rustling the cattle and stealing equipment are to blame?” Grady asked.

  “Lucy Benson is quite sure it is. This must be so difficult for her.” Grandma Mamie tut-tutted. “Byron McKay is calling for her to quit as sheriff and she’s not getting any closer to the culprits.”

  “Byron McKay likes to throw his weight around,” Grady said.

  “He’s a big-time rancher, isn’t he?” Vanessa put in, tucking Cody against her while she opened the magazine with her free hand. “I heard he’s got one of the biggest spreads in the county.”

  “He’s wealthy enough,” Mamie said. “And he likes to let the members of the cowboy league know it.”

  “He’s not president yet, is he?” Grady asked.

  “Oh, no,” Grandma protested angrily, as if the idea horrified her. “Carson Thorn still holds that position and the other members will make sure Byron doesn’t ever get in charge.”

  “This league... That’s the one that threw the fancy party I was at two weeks ago. What do they do exactly?” Vanessa asked.

  “The league formed over a century ago as a service organization,” Grandma Mamie said. “They provide help and resources to the ranchers in the area. There are chapters all over Texas.”

  “What kind of help? Like with the branding and stuff?” Vanessa seemed quite interested in the dealings of the league, which puzzled Grady.

  “It started to fight cattle rustling and give support when times got hard for fellow ranchers.” Mamie gave Grady a warm smile. “Grady and Ben’s great-grandfather, Bo Stillwater, was one of the founding members.”

  “They aren’t helping much for all the cattle rustling going on,” Vanessa said, still turning the pages of
her magazine one-handed, seemingly oblivious to her little boy, now, thankfully, sleeping in her arms. “I heard that Byron McKay got some fancy machinery stolen and another cattleman lost some animals. And that town sign thingy is still gone. Not too on the ball, are they?”

  “I’m sure they’re doing what they can,” Grady said, cradling the cup of coffee, feeling a sudden chill. Coming home to stories of a rash of thefts of cattle and machinery and equipment was disheartening. The community of Little Horn, with the help of the Lone Star Cowboy League, had always pulled together. Though he had been back only a few days, he already sensed mistrust growing between the local ranchers.

  “Funny how nothing’s disappeared from this place, though,” Vanessa said with a sly look. “Maybe the thieves are those kids you’ve got working on that, what is it, ranchers something or other?”

  “Future Ranchers program,” Grady said, shooting her a warning look. “And you might want to watch what you say about the girls we’ve got helping here. The Markham sisters’ ranch has been hit, as well.”

  “But that Maddy Coles. I mean, she’s a foster kid. She probably has all kind of weird friends.”

  “That’s enough,” Grady snapped, angry at her allegations, then frustrated at his shortness with her.

  Too many things were happening at once, he thought. His brother, Ben, in the hospital, Vanessa and her ever-changing insinuations, all the upheaval the thefts had caused in the community.

  Seeing Chloe hadn’t helped his equilibrium, either. He’d thought hearing about her marriage would ease away the feelings he still harbored, but now she had come back to Little Horn. Single and as attractive as ever.

  He felt a clutch of pain in his leg and all thoughts of Chloe vanished with it. He wasn’t the man he used to be and he had nothing to offer any woman. He shot a glance at Vanessa. Especially not with someone like her entangled in his life.

  “What puzzles me is all the things other people are receiving,” Grandma said. “The new saddles at Ruby’s, the cattle at the Derrings’ and the clothes for their foster children. It’s all very nice and generous, but it’s puzzling.”

  “Well, I wouldn’t mind getting some of the stuff being handed out.” Vanessa tossed the magazine aside then stood in front of Grady and held out the little boy, who had woken up again and was stirring in her arms. “Can you take him? I’m tired. Didn’t sleep a wink last night.”

  Grady hadn’t slept much, either, but he said nothing. Instead, he set his coffee on a nearby table and took him from Vanessa. Cody stared up at him with bright eyes and gurgled his pleasure, and Grady felt a tug on his heart. He was such a cute little guy.

  “I think you should see about getting that Eva chick back, that nanny you hired,” Vanessa said. “I don’t think I can take care of this little boy by myself.”

  Then she sauntered off before Grady could say anything more.

  When she was out of earshot his grandmother got up and sat down beside Grady, letting Cody grab her finger with his. “I wish we could hire Eva again, but she’s married now and I want to give her time to concentrate on her husband and married life. I wish I knew what to do.”

  “We will take care of him,” Grady said firmly. “He’s a Stillwater. Our flesh and blood. Our responsibility.”

  But even as he spoke the brave words, he felt a tremor of apprehension. Ben lay in a coma. He had his own injuries to contend with. His grandmother was getting on in years.

  If Vanessa wasn’t stepping up, what would Cody’s future look like? Grady knew getting married wasn’t in the picture for him, so he couldn’t count on creating any kind of family for Cody.

  His thoughts, unexpectedly, drifted to Chloe. Her warm smile, as generous as always. Her easy nature.

  He pushed them aside as irrelevant. He would never be marriage material.

  His mother hadn’t been able to live with an injured man; how could he expect Chloe to?

  CHAPTER TWO

  “Got a new patient for you. Is Salma here?”

  Chloe looked up from the makeshift desk she had been given in one corner of the physical therapy department at the doctor standing in front of her. With his droopy moustache and thick eyebrows, Dr. Schuster looked as though he should be riding the range rather than diagnosing and treating patients. Dr. Schuster had taken advantage of this impression and adopted an aw-shucks attitude that put many of his patients at ease.

  However, right now he looked anything but as he tapped the file he held against his other hand, the frown on his face giving her cause for concern.

  “She’s gone for lunch. Can I help you?”

  “I thought she would be around.”

  “You look worried. Is it a difficult case?”

  “I’ve got other things on my mind,” he said. “But this patient does bother me. He said he doesn’t need therapy.”

  “Do you want me to talk to him?” Chloe asked, not sure she could make a difference, but sometimes another voice helped.

  “You mean turn on that Miner charm?” Dr. Schuster joked. Then he shook his head. “No. I can’t ask that of you.”

  “It’s my stepsister who has all the charm,” Chloe returned. Ever since yesterday when Vanessa had shown up with her arm hooked in Grady’s, grinning that smug Cheshire smile, Chloe had struggled with envy and frustration. So often in the years after Vanessa’s mother had married Chloe’s widowed and grieving father, Chloe had wished she and Vanessa could be close. As an only child she had looked forward to having a sister.

  Instead, Vanessa had been difficult and contrary, trying at every opportunity to either discredit Chloe or treat her with contempt.

  “Vanessa definitely has a certain appeal.” Dr. Schuster’s smile deepened. “She’s been the talk of the town since she descended on the party last month claiming to be Cody’s mother. But I doubt she has as much staying power as you.”

  “Words to make a girl’s heart go pitty-pat,” Chloe said in a dry tone and held her hand out for the file. “Who is the reluctant patient?”

  “Another Stillwater. Grady.”

  And now Chloe’s heart did, in fact, go pitty-pat. And then some. She took the folder from Dr. Schuster and opened it, scanning the contents, trying to maintain her distance.

  “This patient will need quite a bit of time spent with him.” Chloe flipped through the file, shifting into professional mode. “He’ll need to get started sooner, rather than later, if he wants to regain full mobility.”

  “He only arrived Friday, last week,” Dr. Schuster said. “He came to see me yesterday on the recommendation of his surgeon in the army.”

  “Okay. I’ll contact Mr. Stillwater. See what I can do.”

  “Good. Great. Make sure you let Salma know, as well. I suspect once you get Grady cooperating, as senior therapist she’ll be doing most of the work.”

  Chloe understood this, but worried that Dr. Schuster thought she wasn’t as competent as Salma. He looked as if he wanted to say more, then left, his lab coat flaring out behind him as he hurried off.

  Clearly in a rush, Chloe thought, setting the file aside.

  She had hoped to talk to him. Tell him about her personal situation. Guess it would have to be another time.

  There were no other visitors in Ben’s room when she got there, and the only sound was the faint hissing of his oxygen, the steady beeps of the monitors. “I suppose you’ve heard about all the happenings in and around the county,” she said to him while she got him ready for his exercises. Talking to patients while she worked was part of the therapy. “Thefts and unexpected gifts and all sorts of stuff. Kind of crazy. So far, though, nothing from your place, so that’s good, I guess. And now your brother is back.” Chloe’s smile faded as she did a series of hip flexions and abductions, thinking of Grady.

  “You know everyone says you look the
same. I can see some minor differences,” she continued. “Grady’s eyelashes are thicker. Hope that doesn’t bother you, though I can’t imagine either of you could care about that. And his one eyebrow slants off to one side. I think he’s a bit taller. Maybe because of his army training. Makes him stand up straighter.”

  A cough behind her caught her attention and she flushed, suddenly self-conscious about her chatter as Mamie Stillwater entered the room holding a sleeping Cody, a large quilted diaper bag hooked over her narrow shoulder.

  “I’m sorry,” Mamie said. “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

  “I’m just doing Ben’s exercises,” Chloe murmured, thankful she hadn’t said anything more.

  “Do you mind if Cody and I watch?”

  “Not at all.” Chloe felt a stirring in her soul at the sight of the little boy, so innocent, his rosy cheeks begging to be touched. Vanessa and Grady’s son. The thought hurt her more than it should.

  At least this child has two parents. As opposed to mine.

  She tried to fight the thought down. I’ll do the best I can, she reminded herself, thinking of the child she carried. At four and a half months, she thankfully wasn’t showing yet, so she hadn’t told anyone. Not even her close friend Lucy. She was too ashamed. Sooner or later, however, she would have to tell the hospital administration, and then everyone else.

  Mamie dropped the diaper bag on an empty chair by the window, shifted the sleeping baby in her arms and stood on the opposite side of Ben, her free hand resting on his head while Chloe did some hamstring stretches.

  “You’ve been doing this awhile?” Mamie asked, fingering Ben’s hair away from his face.

  “About two years. It took me six to get my degree.”

  “And you came back here...”

  “I was offered this job.” Part-time and only temporary, she’d been told, but she’d wanted to come back to Little Horn badly enough that she took the chance it might turn into full-time work.