Jayden’s Hope: MacKenzies of Montana

by Hart, Liliana

  So he waited a little longer. And a little longer. And then he dozed off in the swing around midnight.”

  * * *

  When she found Jayden’s house empty except for Winston, she decided to play hardball.

  “Come on, Winston,” she said. “You’re cordially invited to a sleepover at my house. I have extra snacks in the pantry.”

  Winston got up from his bed and headed to the door to wait for her, and it took a couple of tries to heft him into the car.

  “Maybe we need to lay off the snacks,” she said.

  She drove slowly, as she still wasn’t the best driver when it was snowing, and she made the turn onto Territorial Drive. She was about to pull in the driveway when it finally registered that there was a black Hummer in her driveway.

  “Jayden,” she said. And Winston gave a soft woof of confirmation.

  The house lights weren’t on, but she could see the fire pit burning on the back porch through the glass. She put down her things on the table and then walked over to the sliding glass doors. There he was, asleep on the swing.

  “I love that, man, Winston. I hope that’s okay.”

  Winston did the equivalent of a doggie eye roll, and went to find his bed. A romantic, Winston was not.

  His eyes came open when she slid the door open, and he came to his feet.

  “It’s freezing out here,” she said. “Why didn’t you come inside?”

  “It felt weird being here without you,” he said. “But I wouldn’t turn it down now.”

  He passed by to come inside and the scent of him almost brought her to her knees—fresh soap, paint and the slightest hint of turpentine. She’d missed him desperately. She put on a pot of coffee and then tried to keep her hands busy. She wanted to touch him. For him to touch her.

  “Why is Winston here?” he asked, eyeing the dog.

  “I went to your house after work tonight,” she finally said. “I couldn’t stay away any longer. I had to give it another chance.”

  “So you stole my dog?” he asked.

  Her cheeks got hot. “I felt bad for him there all alone. You weren’t home and it was late. You know Winston likes regular meals.”

  Jayden grunted and turned on the fireplace.

  “I guess we had the same idea,” he said, staring into the flame.

  “Jayden,” she said, and he turned to face her. “I know I hurt you. I know it was wrong. I knew it was wrong from the moment we met. And there is no one to blame but myself for this, despite whatever Declan says. I should’ve come here and done what I’d set out to do. I’d make friends and go to work, pay my bills, and I’d live like a normal person for the rest of my days. And then I met you, and I felt that tiny click the day we shared a pizza after I’d fallen into your arms. I knew better. And I thought, if I could just have this for a little while, it would be enough.”

  “But it wasn’t enough,” he said.

  “No,” she agreed. “It just made me want more. It made me want forever. And the longer we went on the sicker I got about it. I knew it was only a matter of time before things came crashing to a halt.”

  “I wish you would’ve trusted me to tell me the truth,” he said.

  “I was afraid,” she said. She’d forgotten the coffee completely and she walked over to where he stood by the fireplace. “That’s my only excuse. I was afraid you’d leave. And I wanted to have you for as long as you’d let me.”

  “It feels like I’ve wanted you forever. I still want you. That never changed. It just made me angry at myself that I could want someone who belonged to another man.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said, feeling his anguish as if it were her own. “Declan has been helping me get everything in order. I’ve got to fly to Connecticut next week to give a deposition, and I’m also going to file for divorce. It’s not going to be easy to untangle, but the process is started and it’ll work itself out eventually.”

  “Will you get in trouble?” he asked. “Will Declan?”

  “No,” she said. “I might lose the money my father left me, but that was never important to me anyway. Declan knows how to pull strings better than anyone I’ve ever met.”

  “He’s a handy guy to know.” Jayden closed his eyes and then rubbed him. “I’m tired,” he said. “So what are you saying?”

  “I’m saying the same thing I said back at the barn when all this got dropped on you. I love you. And if I’d been free to marry you the first time you mentioned it I would’ve jumped at it and never looked back.

  “But it doesn’t matter what I want,” she said. “It’s going to take time for this to unfold. It could take months or a year. What do you want? What are you comfortable with?”

  “I’m comfortable with being with you, no matter what. And I meant it too. You’re the person I’d move across continents for. I can certainly wait however long it takes for you to marry me. As long as we’re together.”

  Her head dropped on his shoulder, and she couldn’t hold back the tears. His arms came around her and he held her close, and if she wasn’t mistaken she felt some of his tears against her face.

  “I love you,” he said, voice husky with emotion. “And I’ll stand by you through all of this. This is just the beginning. MacKenzies mate for life. And I’ll look forward to the day I get to watch you walk down the aisle. But until then, I’ll just love you the best I can.”

  She kissed him gently. “I love you, too.”

  “I brought you a gift,” he said, looking around. And then he remembered he left it on the back porch and went out to get it.

  He came in with a large rectangle wrapped in brown butcher paper. And he unwrapped it before she could take it from him to do it herself.

  And then she gasped as she saw the drawing from the table alive in front of her eyes. Every detail was so exact. She looked so real she was afraid to touch it in case she felt it on her own skin.

  “You made me beautiful,” she said in awe.

  “You are beautiful. This is how I see you. How I’ll always see you. Look at me and know the truth.”

  “I believe you,” she said. It was written all over his face. She never felt so alive, and so lucky to be loved.

  “And look at it this way,” he said. “You’ll have plenty of time to plan a wedding. MacKenzie weddings are no small affair.”

  She laughed. “I can only imagine.”

  “I can’t believe you stole my dog,” he said, eyeing Winston.

  “He said he wanted to come with me. Who am I to deny him?” she asked. “Or you.” She took his mouth in a kiss again and wrapped her arms around him. And this time they didn’t let go.”

  Here’s a sneak peek at Grant’s Christmas Wish, available at retailers everywhere.

  Grant MacKenzie loved his family. Really, he did. It’s just that there were so damned many of them. Everywhere he turned, there was another MacKenzie in his path for him to trip over.

  The entire family was crammed into the old MacKenzie farmhouse for the holidays. The house had been built by his great-grandfather—a sprawling space that was added onto with every generation, so it resembled a patchwork quilt of wood and stone, the rooms jutting out at varying angles.

  Despite the disjointed construction, it was a house filled with laughter and love and memories that had endured for over a century. In fact, Grant had spent more time at the MacKenzie farmhouse growing up than he had at his own home just down the lane. His uncle had been the elder of the two MacKenzie brothers, so the house had gone to him, and then when he’d passed on the house had gone to his sons. Grant’s cousin, Thomas, currently lived there with his wife and two children, and Thomas used one part of the house for his medical practice. Considering Thomas was the only doctor in the tiny town of Surrender, Montana, the house always gave the impression that it was ready to burst at the seams.

  Grant considered himself a tolerant kind of guy. But enough was enough. He hadn’t had fifteen minutes to himself in the last week since school had gotten out and his
nephews and nieces had been underfoot. He’d exhausted every avenue of entertainment he could possibly think of—sledding, ice skating, taking the kids to get sundaes at Bledsoe’s Ice Cream and Sandwich Shoppe, and they’d played so many video games his eyes were starting to cross. He loved being the “favorite” uncle, but if he didn’t get out of this place soon he was going to lose his mind. It seemed like every MacKenzie in the house had something to say or argue about. And they all had to do it at top volume.

  His four cousins, Dane, Thomas, Riley and Cooper, all had wives and what seemed like a new child every time he turned around. He’d lost count of his nieces and nephews. His aunt and uncle had both passed away some years ago, but that side of the MacKenzie branch was in no danger of dying out. His own side of the MacKenzie family tree was another story.

  All three of his brothers cringed at the thought of marriage. Part of that was because their mother had been devastated by their father’s death, and they didn’t think the heartbreak was worth getting that close to anyone.

  The other reason his brothers didn’t want to get married was that they just weren’t ready, even though Cade, who was the oldest, was a couple of years past thirty. Not to mention the professions they’d chosen didn’t exactly lend themselves to long, stable relationships. Cade was a former DEA agent and had just taken a job as a detective for the Fort Worth police department. Shane was a Navy Seal, and he was out of the country more months of the year than he was in it. And no one knew what the hell it was that Declan did. Though it was obvious he and Shane had worked on jobs together in the past, so Grant assumed he worked for some faction of the government.

  And then there was his youngest sister, Darcy. Just the thought of her strong-arming some poor man into marriage gave him chills. She was wild and reckless, and she’d need someone with a firm hand and the patience of Job to keep her under control. He thanked God every day that it wouldn’t be his problem. And since she was only twenty-four he figured she still had some growing up to do before she settled down.

  The crash of furniture and a war whoop echoed from the next room, and his nephews turned up the TV a little louder to compensate for the noise. His head was pounding, and he’d never needed a beer more. Grant was used to the commotion after all these years, but there was a reason he chose to live in the little house he’d built, secluded from the rest of the town—and better yet, the rest of the MacKenzies.

  “I’m officially declaring myself as Mario Kart champion,” he said to his nephews. “There’s nothing more I can accomplish here, and a man needs a challenge every once in a while. It gets wearisome stomping you guys into dust.”

  He was met with a chorus of snickers and scoffs from his nephews. “Whatever—In your dreams, Uncle Grant.”

  “I’ll play again when you boys decide to bring your A game,” he said with a wink. “I’d be ashamed to call myself MacKenzie if I were you. I’m handing the reins over to Jack here so he can redeem the next generation.”

  Grant relinquished the video game controller to his cousin Riley’s four-year-old son, who was tangled around his neck like a monkey. He unbent his tall, lanky frame from the floor and stretched muscles that had cramped from sitting in one spot too long. He needed a good run, or something else to get the blood flowing and his muscles warmed.

  “Do me proud, son, and kick some butt.”

  “Thanks, Uncle Grant,” Jack said, his chubby fingers already working the controller.

  His cousins had all settled down over the past few years. Even Cooper, the one man who Grant thought would never be able to give himself to one woman. But Coop had proven them all wrong and married a woman he would move the moon and stars for, which just went to prove that there was someone for everyone.

  “Ahh, fresh meat,” his brother Cade called out as he shuffled a deck of cards with easy practice. He clamped a cigar between his teeth and gave Grant a challenging smile. “We were just about to deal a new hand. I’ve taken all the money I can from these losers.”

  Declan sat next to Cade with nothing more than a few quarters on the table in front of him and a scowl on his face, and Shane and Riley sat on the opposite side, having nothing more to show for their success than peanut shells and empty beer bottles.

  “It looks like Darcy’s doing well enough. Why don’t you take her money?” Grant said, glancing at the tall stacks of quarters and the small pile of dollar bills in front of her.

  “Yeah, Cade. Why don’t you take my money?” She shook back a loose tangle of black hair and laughed. “I’m sure he’d be happy to bleed me dry if he could beat me,” she said, winking at Grant. “Some of us are more interested in talking a good game rather than playing a good game. Ante up, MacKenzie. Put your money where your mouth is.”

  The rest of them hooted in laughter, and Cade got that competitive look in his eyes that Grant knew meant trouble. Darcy was no wilting flower, that was for sure, but she could hold her own. She’d bloodied plenty of noses as a child—mostly theirs—she’d had to with four older brothers.

  Darcy and Cade started a string of trash talking that would make their mother box their ears if she heard what was being said. Grant decided to escape before Mary MacKenzie showed up and did just that. Their mom had a way of knowing when her children weren’t doing what they were supposed to.

  He snagged another beer from the ice chest and weaved in and out of running children, a cat, and two dogs until he got to the kitchen. All of his cousins' wives and his mother were gathered around the big island in the center of the room, trying to decide the best way to get a twenty-pound turkey in the oven.

  “Just the man we were looking for,” his mother said with a devious smile.

  “I seriously doubt that,” Grant said. “I have a feeling I’m just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Do you need me to unstop the toilet? Replace shingles on the roof? Do I need to replace the towel bar again in Charlie’s bathroom? It’s always something in this family.”

  Charlie blushed crimson and put her hands on her hips, the glint in her eyes dangerous, while the other women started to laugh. Charlie was married to his cousin Dane, and they’d once used the towel bar in their bathroom a little too rigorously during some naked water games, and the bar had ripped out from the wall. Since Grant had his own construction company and was the handiest with tools, he was the one the family always called on to repair things. And there had been no way he was going to keep that story to himself after seeing the damage they’d done. He’d laughed himself silly at the giant holes in the wall and the two black eyes Dane had sported, since apparently, the force of Charlie pulling it from the wall had whacked Dane right across the nose.

  “Shut up, Grant. You promised you wouldn’t bring it up again.”

  “No, I’m pretty sure I never promised that,” he said, looking completely innocent as he bent to give her a kiss on the cheek. “I promised I’d never tell anyone how you got that hole in the sheetrock of your laundry room.”

  “Ooh, tell us! Tell us!” Cat, Thomas’s wife pleaded. “I always wondered how that happened. It was a really big hole.”

  “It’s a miracle that house isn’t lying in a heap of rubble around them,” Riley’s wife, Maggie said, rubbing her very pregnant belly.

  They didn’t bother to hide the laughter this time at Charlotte’s expense.

  “Grant MacKenzie, look what you’ve started. You stop embarrassing Charlotte right this instant,” his mother admonished, fighting her own laughter. “Help us get this turkey in the oven and then get out of the kitchen.”

  “You know, sometimes a guy gets tired of being objectified for his brawn. I need some respect around here. I’ve got brains too.”

  “Yes, dear, I know.” his mother said indulgently. “But women never get tired of seeing the ripple of muscles, even if they do belong to family.”

  Grant rolled his eyes and heaved the massive turkey into the oven, glad that he was in good shape. There was no way that bird weighed twenty pounds. More like fift
y. His female relatives broke into applause and then promptly went back to orchestrating a dinner for twenty-seven people. He took the moment of their distraction to grab his leather jacket and scarf and escape out the kitchen door before they could find something else for him to do. It wasn’t until he got outdoors that he realized he’d left his beer on the kitchen counter.

  “It’s just not worth going back for,” he muttered, shuddering at the thought.

  Fresh snow crunched underfoot as he walked down the sloping back yard into the trees behind the house. Winter hadn’t been kind to Surrender that year, and it was far from over. Already the grey clouds were pregnant and ready to burst with the next round of fat white flakes.

  The entire family would be sleeping under one roof that night so they could wake up together on Christmas morning (the kids were told that it was easier for Santa to make one stop), so there was no need for him to worry that anyone would be stuck out in the storm.

  The late afternoon sunlight was fading, and he lifted his face up, so the cold slapped at his cheeks, and inhaled the brittle air deep into his lungs. He loved this time of year. The beauty the snow brought to the land—the hushed quiet as it blanketed bare branches and the empty fields where farmers would plant come the spring and let their cattle and horses graze.

  There was no purpose to his steps as he hopped over fallen branches that had snapped off the trees from the cold. He didn’t know exactly where he was going or the heavy need inside of him to get there quickly. He just knew he needed to escape for a little while. To be alone inside his head.

  He’d always felt at home in Surrender. Settled. He’d had no dreams or desires to ever leave the town he was born in or travel the world—unlike his cousins. They’d all left at some point to go to school or find jobs, and yeah, they had come back to raise their families, but they’d had that one taste of freedom before committing themselves to staying home.