Forever Family (River's End Ranch Book 26)

by Kirsten Osbourne

  Bobbi looked down at the book in her hand, wondering how things had changed so very much in thirty-five years. Were they just taking each other for granted? Or was there more to it? She didn’t know, but she was determined to find out. She wasn’t willing to throw away the life she’d worked so hard to build.

  As she slipped into bed beside her husband, she worked hard to transform her thoughts. He was snoring, something that usually annoyed the snot out of her. She would think of his snores as his way of letting her know he was all right. All. Night. Long.

  *****

  Bobbi was up early the following morning, having agreed to run the diner for the day. The twins had a checkup, and Kelsi wasn’t about to let her mother go to the doctor in her place. She quickly dressed, and walked across the ranch’s grounds toward the diner. Not much had changed in the place since she’d worked there thirty-five years before.

  The day after their first kiss, Wilber had come to the restaurant for lunch. She was washing dishes when his mother called her. “Time for your lunch break!”

  “I’ll take it in a few minutes. I want to finish this sinkful.” Bobbi had always been very conscientious about her work, but with the Westons giving her a job and a place to stay, she felt like she needed to do as much as she possibly could for them.

  Kelsey shook her head. “No, it’s time for your lunch break.”

  Bobbi wanted to continue arguing, but she knew it was no use. Mrs. Weston was very easy on her most of the time. If she wanted her to take a lunch break now instead of later, she would definitely do it.

  Untying her apron, she walked out front to one of the booths. As she started to sit, she heard her name called. “Over here, Bobbi!”

  Bobbi turned to see Wilber sitting at a booth, nodding to the other side. She slipped in across from him. “Are you the reason I’ve been told that I have to take my lunch break now and not later?”

  “I can’t control my mother! Do you think I can control my mother?”

  She shook her head with a laugh. “No, I would never presume to think anything like that!”

  “Good, because this was all her idea.” He picked up her hand and brought it to his lips. “One I wholeheartedly agree with, of course…but her idea.”

  She tried to pull her hand away, blushing profusely. “You shouldn’t do that in such a public place. People will talk.”

  “They’ll say, ‘Wilber has good taste. That girl is pretty special.’” He nodded to her menu. “Do you know what you want?”

  She shrugged. “I’ll just have a cheeseburger.”

  “Onion rings or fries?”

  “Rings sound good.”

  “Here comes Mom.” He ordered for both of them, asking for root beer for them each to drink. As soon as his mother turned away to put their orders in, he pulled a bouquet of wildflowers out from under the table. “I got up before dawn to go up into the mountains and pick them for you. Does this mean I get brownie points?”

  She took the flowers from him, burying her face in them. “Thank you.”

  He grinned, holding her free hand. “I listened to what you said.”

  “I see that.” She frowned down at the flowers. “I have to put them in water so they don’t die! I’ll be right back.” She slipped out of the booth and took them to the back of the diner, putting them in a glass of water. Truthfully, she could have waited longer to put the flowers up, but the tears in her eyes wouldn’t have been possible to hide. She didn’t know whether he frightened her more than he pleased her. The emotions were probably neck and neck. She was free to pursue a relationship with him, but it felt very wrong to her. But why?

  She put the flowers on a windowsill, where she’d be able to see them all day as she worked, before drying her tears and walking back out to the front to sit with Wilber. She kept expecting someone to jump out from behind a bush and tell her that she wasn’t good enough for him. She believed it, so it wouldn’t be hard to convince her.

  “How about I come over tonight and watch a movie with you? My parents have a VCR, and they have more than ten movies to choose from. I’m sure we could find something you haven’t seen.” He picked her hand up again, saying nothing about her eyes, which she knew must be red. She’d never learned to cry gracefully.

  “What about you? Will there be a movie you haven’t seen?”

  He shook his head. “I’ve seen them all a dozen times, but that’s okay. I want to spend time with you more than I want to watch a movie.”

  “All right. But only if Don Juan can watch with us. One of the movies they have isn’t Old Yeller, is it?”

  He laughed. “No, but I’m pretty sure they have The Shaggy DA.”

  “Oh, that’s definitely a classic doggie movie. Yes, that’s the one we’ll watch!”

  When his mother stopped by the table a minute later with their plates, he said, “We’re going to watch something on the VCR tonight.”

  “That’s fine. I think your father is taking me to Riston for dinner anyway.”

  He narrowed his eyes at his mother for a moment. “Who’s going to cook for us, then?”

  Kelsey shrugged. “Do you cook, Bobbi?”

  “I do. I don’t enjoy it a lot, but I can sure do it. I’ll cook for us tonight.”

  Kelsey smiled. “I think that’s a fine idea. You’re welcome to use anything in the fridge.”

  Bobbi sighed. How had she been roped into cooking for him? It was only their third time to go out. Surely, he shouldn’t be expecting her to cook yet!

  Chapter Four

  Bobbi made her way back to the kitchen to make sure Bob was on task. The chef for the diner had his own ways of doing things, and he needed to be watched at times. “What’s the special today?”

  Bob glanced up from his food preparation. “Dirty rice and jambalaya. I hate making Cajun while Kelsi is here, because she always adds more Cajun seasoning. She makes me crazy with it.”

  She shrugged. “I know she likes things a little spicier than most people. She hasn’t done that since the babies were born, has she?”

  “Oh yeah. She said the babies need to learn to tolerate hot foods if they want to be able to hold their heads up in public.”

  “I never denied she was special.” She leaned on the counter, watching as Bob efficiently diced vegetables. “How’s Miranda?”

  “She’s good! And so am I because today is kolache day.”

  Bobbi stood up straight. “Kolache day? How many and what kinds do you want?” She found a pen and a piece of paper. She’d go get the savory treat for all of the employees of the diner.

  After getting the order of everyone there, she opened the front door of the diner to head to the bakery, noting that it was just time for both of the businesses to open. She hurried past the stables, waving at Wyatt as she passed.

  “Mom, what’s the hurry?” he called.

  “It’s kolache day at the bakery!”

  “I want two ham and cheese!”

  She nodded, not breaking her stride. The kolaches disappeared too fast for lollygagging. She got to the bakery, and saw there was already a short line out the front. When she got to the counter, she smiled at Miranda, noting that her belly was starting to grow. There was a definite baby boom there on the ranch, thanks to Jaclyn and her obsession with matchmaking. She gave her order, making casual conversation with the baker.

  “That’s a lot of kolaches! Are you feeding the whole ranch?” Miranda asked, her eyes twinkling with amusement.

  “I’m taking Kelsi’s place at the café for today. She has to take the babies to the pediatrician for shots, so she asked me if I’d help out. When Bob told me it was kolache day, I took orders from everyone.” Bobbi looked into the display case. “The cinnamon rolls look delicious today. I may need one of those to have for dessert after lunch.”

  “Works for me.” Miranda wrapped up each treat and put them into a white bakery box.

  “I’ll see you!” Bobbi waved and hurried back toward the café, stopping only at th
e stable to take Wyatt his kolaches.

  Wyatt grinned at her, taking the pastries. “Thanks, Mom.”

  “I couldn’t let my baby starve to death, now could I?”

  True to form, Wyatt shook his head and set to eating. With a wave, Bobbi hurried out the door toward the diner.

  She was almost there when a figure stepped out from behind a tall oak tree. She jumped with fright before she realized it was just Wilber. “Good morning!” she called, continuing her walk.

  He fell into step beside her. “I brought you something.”

  She looked at him with a frown, noting the bouquet of wildflowers in his hand. For years, he’d gone the easy route and purchased flowers for special occasions. He hadn’t picked wildflowers for her since the twins were born.

  “Oh, thank you!” She shoved the bakery box at him and took the flowers, burying her nose in them. “I know just where I’m going to put them.”

  “Oh? Not on the windowsill this time?”

  She laughed. “Well, I’m not on dishwashing duty today.” They now had an efficient commercial dishwasher that did the job she’d once done. “I think I’m going to put them on the counter of the café, so I can see them every time I walk in and think about how much my husband cares for me.”

  He followed her into the café, putting the bakery box on the counter. There were a few customers eating, but the employees descended on the bakery box. “It’s kolache day at the bakery,” Bobbi told them all as she chose a water glass to put the flowers into.

  One of the deputy sheriffs, Seth, was there, and he groaned. “I’m going to have to hightail it over to the bakery as soon as I finish my breakfast. Sheriff will never forgive me if I don’t bring him a kolache. They’re his favorite.”

  “They’re everyone’s favorite,” Bob said as he came from the kitchen to grab two of the pastries for himself.

  Seth frowned at Bob. “I think it’s time you told your wife to start making them every day. This twice a week thing is for the birds.”

  “If she had time she’d do them every day, but they’re very labor-intensive. If you want to go and volunteer your time every morning, I bet she’d make them.” Bob hurried back to the kitchen with his kolaches in hand, knowing the other man wouldn’t take him up on the plan he’d made.

  Bobbi looked over at Wilber, who was watching the byplay. “Maybe it’s time for us to hire another baker to help Miranda. If she can’t make the food that’s most in demand every morning, then we’re missing out on income.” He waved to his wife. “I’m going to go and get some kolaches and then talk to Wade. Maybe he’s got some reason that I can’t comprehend to explain why he hasn’t hired someone to help her full-time.”

  As he left, Bobbi frowned. He was back in work mode, so she was forgotten. It was the way of things, but it wasn’t something she liked. She loved the ranch every bit as much as he did, but she loved her family more. She knew he did too, but he didn’t always show things the same way.

  As she waited tables, her mind drifted back again.

  Wilber arrived just at the time he’d said he would. She added punctuality to her mental list of positive points.

  “I’m in the kitchen!” she called when he yelled out, looking for her. She’d made a simple meal—one she’d made a thousand times. Her foster mother had expected her to cook three nights a week. She’d said that every girl should know how to cook, so she’d be a proper wife.

  Bobbi had always doubted she’d be a wife because she didn’t think any man would want her, but she had done as she was told. She’d always strived to be the foster child who caused the least amount of trouble.

  Wilber walked into the kitchen and found her serving up two plates of spaghetti with garlic bread. He took the plates from her hands and placed them on the kitchen table before gripping her waist and pulling her to him for a kiss. “I didn’t think I’d ever get to do that again. It feels like it’s been years since I’ve kissed you!”

  She shook her head, ignoring the tingling in her lips. “We’ve known each other for three days, and it feels like years since you’ve kissed me? You have a warped sense of time, Wilber Weston.”

  He just grinned, leaning down to pat Don Juan on the head. If she wasn’t working, the puppy was at her side. “Dinner smells delicious.”

  “I hope it tastes good.” Bobbi was being modest. She knew she was a good cook, but she hated doing it so much. She wished she was more like his mother, who seemed to love being in the kitchen.

  “I’m sure it will.” He sat down, picking up his fork. “Who taught you to cook?”

  “My foster mother. The last one. I had four between the ages of eight and ten. No one wanted the child of a murderer in their home. So they kept shoving me off to the next home.”

  “The last one didn’t mind though?”

  She shook her head. “She was sure she could fix me.” She’d used religion as her weapon of choice, but Bobbi didn’t tell him that. It was enough for him to know she’d been with the woman for eight years. Maybe someday she’d tell him all about the places she’d lived, but for now, she didn’t want him to look at her with pity or fear in his eyes.

  After the meal, they did the dishes together, which thrilled her. “My foster brothers were never expected to help with dishes. It was the girls’ job.”

  “Well, I think men and women should share chores equally.”

  “Are you still going to feel that way after thirty years of marriage?” she asked, her eyes dancing merrily.

  “No promises, but I hope I will.”

  They watched the Disney movie together, laughing at the antics of the man changing into a dog. Don Juan seemed to be paying attention at times, but usually he had his head resting on Bobbi’s knee. She was his favorite human, after all.

  At the end of the night, she walked him to the door. It was strange for her, knowing she was living in his parents’ house while he lived elsewhere, but that was the situation they were in. This time she reached out to him, wrapping her arms around his neck for his kiss. She found his kisses to be better than any chocolate she’d ever had, and that was saying a lot.

  He leaned down and brushed his lips against hers gently, and then more firmly. “I’ll see you tomorrow. May I come to have lunch with you?”

  She nodded. “I’d like that a lot.” She walked back to her small room, Don Juan following alongside her. She closed her bedroom door and turned on the radio, needing to lose herself in the music. She had always loved music, and would have liked to learn an instrument, but it cost too much for just a foster child. Of course the birth children of her foster parents had been allowed to play anything they wanted, but it was forbidden to her.

  She danced to the song on the radio, feeling as if she was doing something slightly wicked. Dancing had been forbidden to her as well. As the song ended, she heard the announcer’s voice. “There’s been a prison break in Oklahoma. Please be on the lookout for…” She didn’t hear the rest—she’d frozen in place. Her father had tried to write letters to her over the years, but she’d returned them all unopened.

  She walked into the bathroom and stood under the shower spray, allowing the water to wash over her, not realizing until she was getting out that she’d forgotten to remove her clothes. Silently, Bobbi prayed, “Please, God, don’t let it be my father who has escaped. I couldn’t bear to see him.”

  Bobbi shook her head, refusing to think about her father. He’d been in prison for more than forty years, and she needed to forget him. She slid two specials onto a table in front of two men she didn’t know. “If you need anything else, be sure to let me know. My name is Bobbi.”

  She turned and walked back toward the kitchen, pestering Bob for her next order. Keeping her mind off her father was always best. He was due to be out soon, she knew. She couldn’t remember exactly when.

  As she was finishing up her shift, she spotted Dani walking toward her. “Mom, you have a letter.”

  Bobbi took the letter and slipped it into he
r pocket, knowing that time with her older daughter was more important than any letter that could be found. “How’s my girl?”

  Dani pushed her hair out of her eyes. “I’m good. Happy. You did the right thing sending Travis to me. He’s the perfect husband for me.”

  “I’m glad. I heard something about the two of you racing four-wheelers through the mountain paths. Is that true?”

  Dani laughed. “I can neither confirm nor deny this rumor…”

  “Just be careful. I only have two daughters, and I don’t want to lose one of them!”

  “But if I was Wyatt?”

  “I don’t want to lose him. He’s good with the horses. Maybe Will…”

  Dani shook her head. “Your heart would break into a million pieces if you lost any of us, and you know it.”

  “Of course it would. Just don’t tell your brothers that, would you?”

  “Too late, Mom. We already know how much you love us. You wouldn’t be so hard on us otherwise.”

  Bobbi smiled at that. “That’s all your father. I’m just the unfortunate messenger at times.” She leaned toward Dani, ready to impart a secret. She didn’t know why she felt the need to tell her anything, but she was feeling very nostalgic. “Your father was forced to jump through hoops to see if he was ready to take over the ranch thirty-five years ago. His tests lasted three years, if I remember correctly. He hated it as much as you and your brothers and sister do.”

  “Really?” Dani asked, obviously surprised.

  “Really. Whose turn is it to cook this Sunday?”

  “Kelsi’s. Are you coming?”

  “It’s a family dinner. Why wouldn’t I come? Am I not family?”

  “Well, you don’t always, so I was just wondering.”

  Bobbi grinned, hugging her daughter. “We’ll be there. Tell Kelsi to chop up a few more jalapeno peppers.” As Dani ran off, Bobbi dug the letter out of her pocket, frowning when she saw the familiar address. It was from the prison. Again.