“Then kiss me. And make it look good! I want her to see that we’re still all right, even though she told me all those stories.” Natalie leaned toward him, raising her lips.
“Don’t have to ask me twice!” He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her softly, one hand moving up to toy with her hair. After a moment, he lifted his head. “How was that?”
“Very nice.” She grinned at him. “Didn’t you say something about feeding me?”
“Are you saying you’d rather eat than kiss me? Are you kidding?”
“Yup. I’m hungry! I work in a candy store, and I only let myself have two pieces per day. It’s like my very own version of self-torture!”
Five minutes later they were at the diner, and he led her inside. They sat down, only to have Miss Mae appear with menus a minute later. “Chicken-fried steak is the special today and every Wednesday. Do you know what you want to drink?”
“Just water for me,” Natalie told her.
“I’ll have a Dr. Pepper.”
After Miss Mae had walked off, Natalie wrinkled her nose. “I don’t know how you can drink that stuff! Don’t kiss me after drinking it, okay?”
“You don’t like Dr. Pepper? Are you sure you’re from Texas?”
“Positive. And I’m third generation, too.”
He shrugged. “I’m not sure how that’s even possible, but okay.” He nodded to her menu. “You going to bother with that thing? Or just get the chicken-fried steak?”
“I think I’ll get the chicken-fried steak.” It was one of her weaknesses. How could anyone not love chicken-fried steak?
“Good choice. I swear, their chicken-fried steak is one of the best things I’ve ever put in my mouth. It’s almost as good as my mom’s, and that’s saying a whole lot.” He truly believed his mother was the best cook in Texas—maybe in the whole country!
“Why don’t you have your mom make it, then?”
Caleb shook his head emphatically. “With as much cooking as my mom is constantly doing, there’s no way I’m going to ask her to do more. She’s an incredible cook, but she also doesn’t really get paid for it, and it’s not fair to ask her to do more and more.”
“I’m glad you have that kind of respect for her.” Natalie was more impressed with him by the minute. He was a good man who really respected his mother. She couldn’t find a thing wrong with that.
“Wait until you see the kind of cooking she does for Friday night supper. Even with Benjamin and Melissa getting married the next day, she’ll put on a huge spread. You will simply be amazed.”
“Does anyone help her with it?”
He shook his head. “She starts early Friday morning, and she cooks all day long. It’s seriously amazing. Often, she’ll have Dad make a brisket on the grill or make some hotdogs and hamburgers…but everything else is made with her own two hands. I really think she’s a miracle worker.”
“Awesome. I can’t wait!” The more she learned about the McClain family, the more amazed she was by them. They were truly special people.
“I’ll pick you up at six on Friday? Supper officially starts at six-thirty, so that gives us time to get there.”
“I’d like that.”
Miss Mae brought their drinks, eyeing Natalie. “You’re new in town.”
Natalie nodded. “I opened the new candy shop, which I still need a name for. I can’t keep calling it the candy shop forever.”
“I guess not, but that’s what folks in town will call it anyway.” Miss Mae put her pen to paper. “What can I get you?”
“Chicken-fried steak.”
“Mashed potatoes okay?”
“Yes, please.” What else would anyone eat with chicken-fried steak? Natalie was of the opinion that chicken-fried steak came with white gravy and mashed potatoes. Period.
“What kind of dressing for your salad?”
Natalie considered for a moment. “Ranch.”
“Exact same thing for me, please,” Caleb said.
“All right. Give me a few to get your salads.” Miss Mae studied him for a minute. “Don’t go marrying the girl just because she makes candy for a living, now. Make sure you care about her first.”
Caleb laughed. “I promise I will make sure I love any woman before I marry her.”
“Oh, please. I know how you McClains work. You’ve been seen in public with her. I expect to hear about an engagement any day.”
“I haven’t even bought a ring yet!” But he knew he would, and probably soon. She’d made it through the test to see if she could handle their strange family. What else could he really ask for in a wife?
“But you will. She seems sweet enough. Has your mama met her yet?” Miss Mae asked with all the confidence of someone who had known him for his entire life.
“They met Monday.” Caleb didn’t really care what Miss Mae said about how fast the men in his family married. He just hoped it didn’t bother Natalie.
“I hope you’ll be happy together.” With those words, Miss Mae wandered off toward the kitchen to place their order.
“So being seen in public with you is the same as announcing our engagement?” Natalie asked, shaking her head. “Your family is a bit strange, you know.”
He grinned. “I never denied it.” Taking a sip of his Dr. Pepper, he watched her face, wondering if it bothered her that people were jumping to conclusions about them.
“Are you still coming over after lights-out tonight? You left your movie, so we could watch it.” She wanted as much time with him as she could get.
He nodded. “I’ll be there. Benjamin knows that I get to leave after lights-out every night this week. He’s had a lot of time with Melissa, and he’s seeing her during the day, so I get after-bed hours. It’s my turn.”
“Sounds fair to me.” She moved her hand to the middle of the table where it was touching his.
Caleb grinned. “I like how you let me know what you want and need. I think I want to keep you.” He wove his fingers through hers, happy to touch her.
She sighed. “Most men would say, ‘I think I’m falling in love’, but you? ‘I think I want to keep you’. Like you’re going to put me in your pocket to take out when you want to look at me.”
He laughed. “Sorry if I made it seem that way. What I really mean to say is I want to spend the rest of my life making you happy. Is that better?”
She made a face. “I’m not sure if I’m ready to hear that yet, either. Maybe you could just feed me and watch movies with me for now.”
“That works, too. I told you I wasn’t very experienced with women. I guess it’s really obvious now, huh?” Caleb felt at a loss, but he didn’t care. He was going to play it by ear.
“Maybe a bit. I kind of like it, though.”
He frowned at her, trying to understand. “You do?”
She nodded. “It means that you live exactly as you seem to live. You’re not running around hitting on random women and getting experience. You’re just a simple rancher who takes care of boys for a living.”
“I am. I very much am. I hope you don’t mind that. My whole life is in transition at the moment. Benjamin is my partner with the boys, and he is going to start living outside the house. I’ll be there with them at night, and that’s enough while they sleep, but he’ll come for the mornings and the evenings. It’ll just be a bit strange.”
“It makes you feel uneasy, doesn’t it?”
He shrugged. “I’m not great with change. I’ll have to go do something crazy this afternoon, and I’ll feel better.”
“Crazy? In what way?”
He shrugged. “I might go ride my four-wheeler in the herd of cattle. That helps sometimes. Or I could do some other thing that would get my adrenaline up. I’m an adrenaline junkie.”
She frowned. “I don’t like that at all! What if you get hurt?”
He shrugged, getting quiet as their salads were put in front of them. “I never get hurt. I know when I will, because of my danger warning, so I just don’t do something if there’s da
nger involved for me.” To him it was simple. Cut and dried. By the look on her face, he could see she didn’t see it the same.
She shook her head. “What if your power fails, and you get hurt?”
“My power never fails. I know it sounds a little crazy to someone who hasn’t known me long, but even my brothers don’t question it anymore. They tell me to go jump off a bridge when I get edgy.”
“Please tell me you’ve never done that!”
“Sure, I have. Into a river.” He shrugged. “Was fun and made me feel better for a bit.”
“I can live with your power, but I’m not sure I can live with you putting yourself in danger all the time. That scares me!”
He frowned. “Seriously? It bothers you?”
“Yes! I can’t imagine how I’d feel if I was trying to raise seven boys on my own!” She shook her head emphatically. “No way!”
“Only the youngest has seven sons. There’s a chance for daughters for us.”
She glared at him. “I don’t care if we have boys or girls. I won’t be left a widow because I’m married to a man who sees danger as a challenge.”
He sighed. “We’re jumping the gun here. I don’t even have a ring yet, remember?” Of course, he was thinking about looking at them after lunch. Maybe he should put that off, though. If she was that concerned about his penchant for danger, it might be time he learned to do without his adrenaline rushes—if he even could.
“I need to think about whether or not I could tolerate that.” She pushed her salad bowl away. “How can you do that, knowing you have all those boys looking up to you?”
“I trust my powers. I understand you don’t. I’ll try to stop.”
“You will?” She was surprised to hear him say that. “You’d really stop with the adrenaline rushes for me?”
He nodded. “I would try. I can’t make any promises. I’ve been doing it since I was a small boy, and it’s pretty ingrained at this point.”
“I bet your mother hated it.”
“She doesn’t talk about it much, but I think she does. I guess I should spend more time thinking about how the people around me worry when I do dangerous things than I do. I’ll do my very best to be more careful.” It wouldn’t be easy. Maybe he should take up needlepoint or something. He was sure the boys would be highly amused.
“Thank you.” Natalie had been able to keep her heart separate from him until that moment. Knowing he would try to change something that was so much a part of him for her made her realize he was as serious about her as she was about him. In just forty-eight hours, something had changed inside her.
“It’s going to sound corny, but I mean it. I’d do anything for you.” He squeezed her hand tightly.
Miss Mae put their plates on the table. “I’ll get another water and a Dr. Pepper. And no more mushy stuff in the diner. It’s messing with my head.” She wandered off with their glasses in hand.
Caleb sighed heavily, calling after her. “You sure do know how to spoil a moment, Miss Mae!”
“No more moments in my diner. You hear me, Caleb McClain?”
“I hear you.” He shook his head, catching Natalie’s eye.
She giggled. “Now you know why I moved out of Wiggieville to start over. I didn’t need to be treated like I was still a child every day for the rest of my life.”
“No, but you giggle when I am.” He frowned at her. “What’s up with that, anyway?”
She shrugged. “I don’t see you as a boy. I see you as an almost larger than life man who makes my heart beat faster. And there you are, being treated like a child by everyone around you. It’s fun.”
He took her hand and brought it to his lips. “It’s nice to have someone see me for who I am now, and not for who I was ten or fifteen years ago.”
“Well, I do, and I’m not sure I could change that if I wanted to.”
“I’m watching you two!” Miss Mae put their refills on the table, shaking her head. “No lovey stuff in this diner. You hear me?”
Caleb got to his feet and caught Miss Mae in a huge hug, kissing her cheek. “Not even if we’re being lovey with you?”
Miss Mae, old enough to be his grandmother, swatted his arm. “You stop that nonsense, or I’ll be talking to your mother!” She had a huge grin on her face as she walked away.
“That was really sweet, you know.” Natalie had even more respect for him now.
He frowned. “What was sweet?”
“The way you made her feel like a million dollars.”
He shrugged. “She’s always been like a grandmother to me. I love her.”
She smiled, happy that he could so easily feel and express his emotions. It was almost like he was her dream man. She cut into her steak and took a bite, closing her eyes. “I never should have tried this. I will be here every day just for their chicken-fried steak.”
He grinned. “I love it. I come most Wednesdays, because that’s when it’s on special.”
She hadn’t considered how little money he must make. “Let me buy lunch today.”
He shook his head. “Absolutely not! I invited you, so it’s my treat.”
“But…”
“No, buts. I make a good salary, and I don’t really have any living expenses except my car.”
“Oh, I was a little worried about that…”
“My family has owned the land the boys’ ranch is on since right after the Texas War of Independence. We’re not hurting for money in any way.”
Natalie nodded, understanding a little better. “How did you come to have a boys’ ranch on your family’s property?”
“My great-grandfather married a girl who had been raised mostly in an orphanage. She ended up being adopted, but she was already a teenager, and she worked as a seamstress. He always knew he’d marry a seamstress named Penny, and when one of his brothers heard she was living in Nowhere, he went to meet her. They were married not long after.”
“That’s cool. So she was a vision of his?”
“Yes. Just like my dad has visions of who we’ll all marry. Anyway, shortly after they were married, there was a fire at the boys’ home here in town. It was run by the church. They hurried into town to fight the fire, but everything was lost, and the church didn’t have money to rebuild. So Penny McClain, who knew she’d have seven boys of her own, declared those boys were hers, and she took them home with her. The cabins that they built to live in that summer still stand on ranch property. I’ll show them to you sometime soon.”
“That’s neat.” She smiled dreamily. “I don’t know any fun stories like that about my ancestors. It sounds like you know everything about your family.”
“I kind of do. It’s strange, but my whole family has always kept track of stuff like that. I could go back at least fifteen generations with a story for each family.”
“Do you have any writing skills? Because those are stories I would read!”
“No, I really don’t. I wish I did.” He ate the last bite of his chicken-fried steak. “I need to get you back. We took much longer for lunch than we probably should have.”
Natalie shrugged. “That’s all right. I think Sheila will forgive me, don’t you?”
He laughed, checking the time on his phone. “I need to be back to the ranch within an hour. I usually work all day, and today I’ve been a wastrel.”
“Sometimes being a wastrel is what you need to do!”
He threw money on the table to cover their meals and a generous tip for Miss Mae. “Let me get you back to work.”
“As much as I love my job, I’m sad I don’t get to spend the rest of my day with you.”
His arm went around her shoulders. “Me too. What’s wrong with us?”
She didn’t answer. What could she say? I don’t know about you, but I’m in love? That wouldn’t work. As much as she cared, and as much as she was starting to trust him, she couldn’t give any man that much power over her. Not yet, anyway.
Chapter Nine
Nick was in mu
ch better spirits that evening, which thrilled Caleb. He wasn’t pleased he had to make up his time with Adam, but he did it without too much complaining. When Caleb met him at Adam’s office with Hunter in tow to lead him to the area where everyone was working, Nick said, “My head feels smaller. You happy now?”
“Got it shrunk, did you?” Caleb had heard the joke many times over the years. The boys always referred to their therapy sessions that way.
“I did.” Nick looked at Hunter, who was fast becoming his closest friend. They were roommates there on the ranch, and were always together when it came to work crews. “What job are they torturing us with today?”
“Mending fences,” Hunter said with a groan. Every boy there hated to mend fences almost as much as they hated mucking out the stables. It was not a pleasant job, but someone had to do it.
“Yuck. How’d we draw the short straw?” Nick asked.
“There was no short straw,” Caleb responded. “Everyone was well behaved, so we’re rotating through all the stuff everyone hates. You need to learn to do it all anyway.”
“Why?” Nick asked. “It’s not like I’m going to be a cowboy.”
A dark man who was walking toward them stopped. He was dressed like a cowboy. “I said that when I first came to the ranch fifteen years ago. Guess what? I never left, and I’m a cowboy here. You never know. Just learn everything they’re willing to teach you.”
“Who are you?” Nick asked, wondering why the man even cared what he thought.
“I’m Max, and I love it here. I wouldn’t leave the ranch for anything.”
Nick frowned as the man walked on. “Did you plan that?” he asked Caleb accusingly.
“How could I have planned that? I didn’t know you were going to be whining about working at that exact moment.” Caleb shook his head. “No, he really was a boy on the ranch many years ago. He never moved away. You’d be surprised at how many of the boys that come here don’t go. This becomes their forever home.”
Nick frowned. “What if I don’t want it to be my forever home? What if I want to go to college and be a business tycoon?”
“Then you will be able to do that. We’ll arrange for scholarships for you, and you’ll go to college.” Caleb didn’t mention that the money from the fundraiser they had every year was split between the boys. Nick came after the fundraiser this year, but next year, he’d have a good amount of money in his trust fund. The boys never knew about the money until they were ready to be on their own, though.
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