They paused outside the square, worn rectory, the last building at the north end of town.
“For a long time folks in the Crossing have been going their own way, not sharing words or the Word. God’s word, that is, about loving and caring and sacrifice and forgiving. But you and the boy, going house to house, inviting folks in, well...”
A winsome smile deepened the crinkles edging his eyes. “You got it started, and I’m only sorry I won’t be here to see it all change, but that will take time and a man my age doesn’t take time lightly.” He winked, still smiling. “My daughter’s due to pick me up tomorrow, but I’m glad I got a chance to thank you for that nice service today. And for being here. It makes me see how there is a season for everything, like the Good Book says. Your season is upon us.”
He shook her hand, and for a quick moment, she didn’t want to let go because the old fellow’s wisdom struck a chord within her. Loving. Forgiving. God’s word.
She’d never considered that her messages hadn’t reached Heath. Messages always got through, eventually. Didn’t they?
Reverend Sparks moved to the house, just as the church bells chimed the six o’clock hour.
The last toll trailed off softly. A zephyr breeze lifted upper leaves in a rustling whisper. She breathed in clean air, with the bright blue sky above and beyond the rugged peaks of mountains.
Then she thought of that woman at Uncle Sean’s service, so happy to get a bit of news, of how one small flyer had brought neighbors and friends together.
A town worth fighting for.
She turned Honey’s Money around and re-mounted, studying the layout of the mostly empty buildings as she went by. As she scanned them, the potential opportunity gleamed beneath shoddy exteriors. Shepherd’s Crossing was a chance to start fresh, and make a difference in another way she knew well: a paper. Simple, to-the-point good reporting to reconnect the small town to its near neighbors.
But first, there was a mother dog who needed love and attention and Lizzie was determined she’d get it. By the time she got the horse settled, light was fading, but the two-story ranch home glowed from within. And inside, Betsy was presenting the world with tiny reddish gold puppies, and Lizzie sat right there, alongside the whelping box Cookie had brought in from the barn, and softly cheered her on.
Chapter Sixteen
Zeke’s overnight stay at St. Alphonso’s gave Heath plenty of time to think. And then berate himself. And then think again. And in between all that thinking, he did some first-class praying, the way he had when he was a kid.
How had this happened? How had everything gone so completely astray twelve years ago? Lizzie had spent all that time thinking he didn’t care enough to come to her. To help her. To be with her.
He’d have done anything to help her. Then. And now. She must think him to be the worst loser to ever walk the planet, and yet—
She didn’t. She’d come to the ranch calm and gentle. Ready to move on. He’d been the angry one, the defensive jerk, and all because he believed the lies he’d been fed like a stray dog grabs morsels of food.
Shame bit deep. Real deep. And the doctor had been correct, the chair he’d bunked in overnight was about the least comfortable piece of furniture known to man. But today was a new day. His boy was recovering. And Lizzie...well. One way or another he was going to convince her to give him a chance. To give them a chance.
“Your little fellow’s going to be just fine,” the doctor told Heath when she came into the cubicle to discharge them. “I’ve written down the name of that orthopedist in McCall. He’ll set the wrist and cast it, and by midsummer Zeke will be right as rain. Everything was fixable, and that’s a good thing.”
Relief flowed through Heath as she handed him the discharge papers. He only wished his history with Lizzie could be mended that easily.
Zeke wasn’t in the best of moods. When Heath had to help him with his seat belt latch because the boy’s left hand couldn’t maneuver the buckle, Zeke’s lower lip stuck out. “I wish I never climbed that stupid old tree. It was a dumb thing to do and I’m never, ever, ever going to climb a tree again.”
Heath saw the choice before him, plain as day.
He could agree with the kid and offer his son a measure of safety...
Or he could let Zeke grow up, encouraged to explore the world around him.
He chose the latter and kept his voice easy. “Hey, cowboy, climbing the tree wasn’t the problem.”
“It wasn’t?” Zeke peered up at him, perplexed.
“Nope.” Heath slid into the front seat and smiled at his boy through the rearview mirror. “Letting go was the problem. Next time you climb the tree, hang on tighter, okay? I climbed a lot of trees in my time, and it’s a good thing for a cowboy to know. In case you get chased by a cougar or something.”
The likelihood of that was about zero, but Zeke’s brows shot up. “So it’s really good to know how to climb a tree?”
“On my honor.” He pulled onto the road and considered his words as he drove north.
He hadn’t been honorable with Lizzie.
He’d let things go too far, then he’d left. Sure, they’d tossed him out, but what if he’d stayed and fought for the right to be with her? What kind of difference could that have made?
Eric Carrington had told the rest of the major landowners that he thought their efforts to revitalize the town were too little, too late. He’d made his view clear at that quick meeting the previous day, and Eric could be right.
But did the same thing apply here? Could he make things up to Lizzie or was it too little, too late? The thought of her losing that baby all alone—
His throat choked and his gut clenched tight when he considered the years he’d spent believing the worst. What kind of a man did that?
He’d be the right kind of man this time. The kind she’d deserved all along.
He pulled into the driveway and parked the car. Corrie bustled out of the house. Relief brightened her dark features and a wide smile echoed his relief that Zeke was going to be all right. “There’s our boy! And doesn’t Cookie have all of your favorite foods waiting inside because we’re that excited to have you back! How are you doing?” She bent low to ask the question as Jace and Ben hurried their way.
But no Lizzie.
“My arm hurts.” Zeke climbed out of the car and leaned against Heath’s leg. He sounded tired. He looked tired, too. “And my head hurts. But not as much as yesterday,” he added. Then his profile brightened as he pointed inside. “Did Betsy have her puppies?” he asked. “That’s all I kept dreaming about in the hospital, a chance to see little puppies. Are they so very tiny?”
“Come see.”
Zeke swung about when he heard Lizzie’s voice and his face lit up when he saw her holding the back door open. “My Lizzie!”
Zeke raced her way, even though he’d been told no running for at least a few days. Obviously that didn’t count where Lizzie was concerned.
He threw his good arm around her. She cuddled him as if he was her own, and Heath’s heart thudded all over again. She’d never had the chance to hold their baby. Nurse him. Sing to him. Rock him. She’d never had a moment of that sweet time while he’d had the pleasure of Zeke by his side for years.
How bitter that must have seemed when she first arrived. And yet she’d shown nothing but kindness and caring to his son.
“You have to be quiet.” She put a finger to her lips as Heath moved their way. “Betsy is tired, but she’s being a very good mom and good moms like their babies looked after. So no loud noises, okay?”
“Okay.” He whispered the word, but then pumped Lizzie’s hand with his good one, clearly excited. “I can’t wait to see them!”
They crossed into the laundry room. Betsy was stretched out on a thick, old blanket with a row of puppies nuzzling along her side.
�
�They are so very itsy-bitsy!” Zeke’s voice started loud, then he reduced it, remembering. “I mean like the tiniest ever,” he whispered, as if shocked. “Lambs aren’t tiny like this.”
“Much bigger,” Heath agreed. He palmed his son’s head. “All animals are different.”
“They’re so cute, but how come none of them have curly hair like Betsy?” Zeke asked as he squatted low. He began to look up and couldn’t hide a slight wince.
Lizzie had squatted down alongside him. She saw the wince and smoothed a soft hand across his brow. “The curls will come,” Lizzie assured him. “As they get bigger. You can have more puppy time later,” she went on gently. “Go rest, and make Cookie feel good by sampling all the stuff he made just for you.”
The big cook came up behind them just then. “Hey, little man. Welcome home.” And when he gathered Zeke into his big, beefy arms, Heath realized something anew. Sean had built a community here on the ranch. People who cared and looked out for one another.
Now they needed to do the same for the town. But he didn’t want to face that task alone. He wanted—
Lizzie smiled as Cookie carried Zeke into the kitchen to tempt the boy with culinary delights. Then she turned, realized Heath was looking at her, and the smile faded.
What could he say to bring the smile back? To bridge a gap that stretched so wide?
Wishing he’d practiced the words on the long drive home, he stayed in the doorway. “The puppies are doing okay? They look really good, Liz.”
Chin down, she stroked Betsy with one hand. “These four seem fine. There was one that didn’t make it. So sweet. So perfect. But she never took a breath.”
He’d lost pups from the farm dogs before. Lambs, too. And each time he felt like he’d failed them somehow. “Liz—”
Regret drew her mouth down. She released a softly drawn breath as she continued to comfort the dog. “I buried her beneath the roses. I thought it would be a good spot.”
“A real good spot.” He ventured forward, unsure what to say, but knowing he had to say something, to open the conversation about their tiny son somehow. He drew closer, close enough to see the light shimmering along strands of her pretty hair. Close enough that a hint of vanilla and spice came his way. And then he restarted the conversation the only way he knew how, with an apology that came way too late, but was necessary, nonetheless. “I’m sorry, Liz.” He paused and took a breath around the lump in his throat. “I’m sorry we lost him. And I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you when you needed me. So sorry.”
* * *
He didn’t say “her,” like he would have if he was talking about the puppy.
He was talking about their son.
“I never got your messages,” he went on. “That old phone of mine broke on the way north and I didn’t bother replacing it for a few months. And they tried to load all my old stuff onto the new phone, but coverage up here wasn’t all that great back then. Neither were the phones. It’s no excuse, I know, but I don’t want you to think I’d have ever ignored you. I’d have come, Lizzie. If I’d known. I’m just real sorry it all came down that way.”
She took a deep breath and faced him, at long last ready to talk. “I am, too. My heart broke that day because there was absolutely nothing I could do, Heath. And I’d have done anything to save him.”
A tear trickled down her left cheek. Then her right one. He reached out and caught the tears with his hand in a touch so sweet and gentle it made her want to cry more. Not less. But the time for tears was over. She took a deep breath and said what she needed to say. “I’m sorry it got all messed up. Sorry about all the lies and secrets. I hate that kind of thing. I think that’s why I jumped at this opportunity so quickly. To get out of the offices and into a barn. Horses don’t lie. They don’t cheat. They don’t steal. To run an operation like we’ve got here is such a total blessing after being surrounded by my father’s crimes. So Uncle Sean’s timing was perfect. In so many ways.”
She’d tipped her gaze down to the dog, but now she locked eyes with Heath.
* * *
He moved closer to her. So close she could smell the remnants of hospital soap on his hands and sweet creamed coffee on his breath. “I want to make a home here, Heath. On this ranch. In this town. Maybe I’ll buy one of those little bungalows in town and fix it up, sweet and simple. And I can be the eccentric spinster lady who writes a little paper once a week. Just enough to bring folks together.”
“I like the staying part.” He sat down next to her as Betsy cared for her four busy babies. “But not the house in town.”
“No?” She turned and met his gaze, and he was pretty sure her eyes twinkled into his. “Do you have a better idea, cowboy?”
He raised one hand up to caress her hair, her neck, her cheek. “I believe I do. And it involves a ring and a promise and a little boy who loves you already. But not nearly as much as I do, Liz.” He took her mouth and kissed her lightly, then not so lightly. When he finally drew back, he left his forehead touching hers. “It’s about us. And that’s how I want it to stay. If you’ll give me another chance, that is. I’d like to have the chance to court you properly.”
“And quickly?” she wondered, smiling.
He laughed and kissed her again. “Quick works for me.”
He pulled her into his arms for an awkward but beautiful hug, a hug she’d been missing for so long. Too long. “It sounds perfect to me, Liz.”
She met his smile with one of her own, then leaned her head against his broad, strong shoulder as the sated puppies dozed off, one by one. “It certainly does.”
Epilogue
Lizzie finished tacking tiny twinkle lights around the second front window while Heath and Zeke hung a festive ornament in each pane.
“I’ve never seen anything so pretty in all my life, my Lizzie!” Zeke started to launch himself into her lap, but Heath caught him.
“Gentle with Mom, remember? There’s a baby growing inside her.”
“And it’s so tiny right now,” Zeke acknowledged because they’d been talking about this for weeks. “But in the spring it will be big enough to get born and be my brother or sister!”
“Which is exactly why we’re all gathering out here tonight,” announced Lizzie as the rest of the family and friends began to gather in the great room. “Zeke is going to tell us if this baby’s a boy or a girl by eating a cupcake. If the filling is pink, then the baby’s a girl. If it’s blue...”
“Then it’s a brother!” Zeke ran in a circle, because that was the kind of thing brothers did. And when the entire family and a host of friends had gathered with glasses of punch to toast the newest Caufield, Zeke took a bite of the cupcake.
He stared at it, then held it up for everyone to see. “I’m gonna have a sister, just like Jo-Jo!”
“A girl!”
“Oh, Lizzie.” Corrie didn’t wait for others to have a turn. She grabbed Lizzie into a hug and held on tight. “I am so happy for you, my precious girl.”
“I know.” Lizzie hugged her back as Heath tucked an arm around her waist.
“We’ve got something else to say,” he announced as Charlotte and Melonie drew closer to Lizzie.
“We’ve picked out a name for our little girl.”
Everyone got quiet.
“We’re naming her to honor the person who has stood by us, all of us—” Lizzie indicated Mel and Charlotte “—all our lives. In about four months you’re all going to meet Coralee Caufield.”
“You are naming that baby for me?” Corrie’s eyes grew wide, then filled with tears. “You don’t have to do that, you know. It’s a fine name for an old Southern woman like myself, but—”
“It is the perfect name,” Lizzie told her. “Stop fussing and be blessed. We couldn’t name our little one after anyone better, and if she turns out to be a strong, gracious, faithful woman like he
r Grandma Corrie, then we’ll be the happiest parents ever.”
Tears slipped down Corrie’s cheeks. Then Lizzie’s. But before Charlotte and Mel could join in, Corrie stepped back. “Well, now, this is not the time for tears, Fitzgeralds! This is a time to celebrate so much good this past year.” She reached back and lifted her little cup of punch and raised it high. “To new life. New chances. And to a baby, born in a manger, in a land unknown, I say Alleluia!”
A chorus of Alleluias rang out around them, and when Heath was finally able to grab a quiet moment with Lizzie, nearly two hours had passed. He put his arms around her from behind and laid his hands over their growing child. “Happy, Mrs. Caufield?”
“The happiest.”
He kissed her cheek, then offered a sweet kiss to her mouth. “Thank you for making this the best Christmas ever.”
She’d come to Idaho wanting to make the best of things, but never expecting to have the best of things.
But God knew. Through the winding and changing and uprising, he knew.
She leaned back against him, happier than she’d ever dreamed possible, then tipped her face up for his kiss, a kiss she wanted to enjoy forever as tiny lights twinkled around them. “The first of many, my love.”
* * * * *
If you loved this book,
check out more heartwarming stories
from author Ruth Logan Herne:
AN UNEXPECTED GROOM
HER UNEXPECTED FAMILY
THEIR SURPRISE DADDY
THE LAWMAN’S YULETIDE BABY
HER SECRET DAUGHTER
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Keep reading for an excerpt from THE RANCHER’S SURPRISE DAUGHTER by Jill Lynn.
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Her Cowboy Reunion Page 17