Circle of Family

by Mia Ross

  As if sensing her emotions, he settled his arms around her and drew her close. It was a comforting feeling, having those strong, capable arms wrapped around her. He didn’t say anything, but the way he held her said he wasn’t planning to let go anytime soon.

  The idea both thrilled and terrified her. This man had literally fallen out of the sky and turned her world upside down. It wasn’t the scenario she’d pictured so many times growing up, but she had to admit it had turned out even better. The fact that he so shamelessly adored her children only made him more of a hero in her eyes.

  Still snuggled against Ridge, she tilted back to look up at him. “Peter’s leaving in the morning. Maybe I should tell him I know what he’s up to.”

  Frowning, Ridge shook his head. “I know it sounds crazy, but for now I think it’s better to let him think you’re buying into this fake custody battle.”

  At first she balked, fearing it would make her appear gullible. Then again, her ex had always thought of her that way. She could see the benefit of keeping him in the dark a while longer. “Let him believe I’m so rattled I’m not thinking straight. Good idea.”

  “I get ’em now and again.” Leaning in, Ridge gave her a long kiss. “Like just then. That wasn’t bad.”

  Mischief sparkled in his eyes, making her laugh. The worry that had been strangling her melted away, and in that single moment, she knew.

  She was in love with him.

  Completely unexpected, it was also the last thing she wanted. She’d struggled long and hard to regain her self-esteem and rebuild the pieces of her that had withered away during her disaster of a marriage. With her father and her brothers in their lives, Kyle and Emily hadn’t suffered from the lack of a father.

  Or had they?

  Seeing her son with Ridge, hearing some of their “guy talk,” she’d noticed a distinct change in Kyle. He stood taller, not because he’d grown, but because he had more confidence. He loved working on Betsy, learning about the tools and skills mechanics used to keep things running. He had a knack for it, Ridge had told her.

  And Emily. Ridge generously endured tea parties and coloring marathons, had even played Candyland over and over one rainy afternoon. When the rest of them begged off a tenth game, he played three more until Emily finally decided she’d had enough. He listened to her as intently as he did Kyle, showing her the same respect he would an adult.

  Over the past few months, Ridge had proven himself to be rock-solid when someone needed him. The football team and Danny Hodges’s secret scholarship came to mind, and Marianne smiled.

  “Something funny?” Ridge asked.

  “Sometimes things don’t work out the way you expect.”

  “Such as?”

  “Such as us,” she said, wondering how he’d respond.

  Tilting his head, he gave her that crooked grin she’d come to adore. “There’s an us?”

  Marianne took a deep, steadying breath and waited for the warning bells to go off in her head. When she didn’t hear them, she realized it was because her mind had caught up with what her heart had known for weeks now.

  “I’d like there to be.” She smiled at the astonishment in his eyes. “Is that what you want, too?”

  “Definitely.”

  Typical Ridge, he didn’t hesitate. He didn’t waffle or dance around, looking for pitfalls that might spell trouble for them. By necessity, Marianne had become a “look, then proceed with great caution” kind of person. Now that she’d seen how deftly Ridge managed his life’s twists and turns, she had to admit there was something exciting about leaping first and figuring out the details later.

  “I know we’ll have problems,” she continued. “You don’t really like being in one place, and the kids and I are settled here.”

  “We’ll figure something out.” Cradling her cheek in his palm, Ridge sealed his promise with a kiss. “Together.”

  “Together,” she echoed with a smile. “I like the way that sounds.”

  “Yeah.” He gave her a slow, lazy grin that warmed her from head to toe. “Me, too.”

  * * *

  Saturday afternoon, Ridge knew he had some serious thinking to do.

  The Wildcats had squeaked out a one-point win in their final regular season game and were going into the championships undefeated for the first time in twenty-seven years. The entire town was excited by the prospect of finally beating their rival, Kenwood, for the title. Folks stopped him everywhere he went, asking his opinion on this or that, suggesting plays they thought would help the team win.

  Some ideas were reasonable, others were downright crazy. He was pretty sure some were physically impossible, but he took each one in the spirit in which it was intended. Thanking each of them for their interest in the team, he expressed his hope that they’d come by the game tomorrow to cheer the kids on. Admission was free, but if half of them showed up, the concession stand would set a sales record.

  What Ridge needed was some peace and quiet to work through something that had been floating around in his head since supper last night. Knowing Marianne would be calling the bank about a mortgage Monday morning, he didn’t have much time. He did his best thinking in the air, but it was too cloudy to take Betsy up. Instead, he borrowed Matt’s bike and started riding, hoping to clear his mind enough to make the hardest decision of his life.

  Once Kyle had told him about the attorney general getting involved in Peter’s shady deal, Ridge knew he could take care of the Peter problem himself. Now that Marianne was planning to mortgage her house to fight the snake in court, Ridge wanted nothing more than to save her and Kyle the heartache that would undoubtedly come along with it.

  He just had to get his head around the solution.

  While he mulled it over, he wasn’t going anywhere in particular, but somehow ended up in Harland’s quaint town square. When he spotted Pastor Charles in front of his church pulling weeds, Ridge took it as a sign and turned into the lot.

  Apparently, God figured he could use some help with this one, Ridge mused with a grin. Parking the bike, he strolled over to the garden. “Want some help?”

  “I wouldn’t turn it down.” Dressed in his usual gray shirt and trousers, the plump man paused and wiped his balding head with a tie-dyed bandanna that looked out of place with his conservative clothes. “My daughter’s,” he explained, waving the bandanna.

  Ridge grinned. “That figures.”

  “Although I do like all the colors,” he went on. “Bright and cheerful.”

  “They sure are.” Ridge grabbed a trowel and started digging down to the roots of a large dandelion.

  They worked for a while, chatting as they moved along the front of the church. When they stopped for some water, Pastor Charles sat on the steps beside Ridge.

  “You didn’t come here to help with these weeds,” he began gently. “Is there something you wanted to talk to me about?”

  Rolling his water bottle between his hands, Ridge stared down at it. He wasn’t good at asking for help, and it wasn’t coming easily to him now. But he’d found a haven of sorts in the little white church, and he knew that was partly because of this kind man with the understanding smile.

  “I really like it here in Harland,” Ridge began.

  “And we like having you here. You’re a good man who’s always ready to lend a hand. You’ve been a wonderful addition to our town.”

  “I’m not sure how good I am. I have a chance to help someone I really care about, but I’m not sure I want to do what it would take.”

  The pastor frowned. “It must be serious.”

  “It means giving up something I love, which makes it tough.”

  “May I ask a question?” When Ridge nodded, the pastor continued. “Is it the thing that you love, or the memories it represents?”

  Thinking he knew
the answer right away, Ridge opened his mouth, then slowly closed it. Grinning, he shook his head. “Y’know, you’re a pretty smart guy.”

  “We all have our moments.” He patted Ridge’s shoulder gently and pushed himself up to stand. “I’d imagine you have a call to make. I’ll leave you to it.”

  As the man strode around the corner of the church toward the side garden, Ridge couldn’t help chuckling. Glancing up, he had to smile.

  “You’re pretty smart, too. Thanks for the help.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Early Sunday morning, Marianne was in the middle of packing the last cooler for the final game that started at noon. The sound of an approaching car caught her attention, and she saw an unfamiliar pickup park just short of Betsy’s improvised landing strip. The driver and his older passenger stepped out, and Ridge strolled from the barn to shake their hands. They all chatted for a few minutes, then the younger man got back in the truck and headed to the highway. The older man handed Ridge an envelope and the two of them climbed the hill.

  Through the screen, she heard him talking a blue streak, but almost nothing from Ridge. She couldn’t make out any words, but the man’s excitement intensified when they reached the plane. Running his hands along the metal body the way Ridge often did, he smiled in appreciation. He shook Ridge’s hand again and, to her horror, started up the ladder fixed to the side of the biplane.

  “No!”

  The bag of ice she was holding burst when she dropped it, spewing ice all over the floor. Ignoring the mess, she raced out the door and toward the hill as fast as she could. Out of breath, she reached it just as the engine roared to life.

  “Ridge, what are you doing?” she demanded, angrily watching the man go through his preflight routine. It was completely irrational, she knew, but for some reason she felt protective of the old plane. She didn’t think Betsy should be going anywhere with any pilot but Ridge—who had the gall to look confused.

  “Well, Ken’s always had a hankering for a plane like Betsy, so I gave him a call.”

  “Why?”

  As the dust whirled around them, Ridge handed over an envelope with his name written on it. In the upper left-hand corner was the imprint Securities and Exchange Commission.

  Baffled, she looked at him for an explanation.

  “Ken and I met in Alaska, when I flew him and his buddies up north for some elk hunting. They bagged three of ’em,” he added with a maddening male grin. “Had to tie one to each wing to level out the plane.”

  Rolling her eyes, she snapped, “But what is this?”

  When she waved the envelope at him, he grinned again. “Ken works for the SEC in Washington. After his great trip to Alaska, he said to call him if I ever needed a favor. When I told him I could use his help with a shady stockbroker, he was only too happy to oblige.”

  “What does Betsy have to do with this?”

  “You don’t get something for nothing,” Ridge explained as if it were obvious. “In return for that,” he nodded toward the letter, “I gave him Betsy.”

  Hands shaking, Marianne slit open the envelope and found a fully executed legal statement from Peter. In exchange for Ken not digging into his business, her ex had agreed to drop all current and future custody claims and never contact Marianne or her children again. It was the same result Caty had proposed, only Marianne wouldn’t have to mortgage her house to get it.

  But it was completely wrong.

  “No.” Pushing the papers against Ridge’s chest, she pointed at the plane slowly rolling away from them. “Bring him back. Tell him you changed your mind.”

  “I’m not gonna change my mind.” Taking her hand gently, he pressed the priceless agreement into her palm. “I want to do this.”

  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the plane moving more quickly now, preparing to lift off. Ridge’s dream, was all she could think as Betsy gained speed and gracefully lifted into the cloudless morning sky. Silhouetted against the sun, it looked much the way it had the first time she’d laid eyes on it. Clearly wishing them farewell, Ken took the cheery blue-and-yellow biplane on a lazy loop around the farm, waving its wings before heading east.

  Ridge watched in silence until the plane disappeared from view. His expression was unreadable, and Marianne felt absolutely horrible.

  “How?” Because she couldn’t begin to hold them back, tears streamed down her face as she looked up at him. “You loved that plane. How could you give it away?”

  With a gentleness that amazed her, he took her face in his hands to brush her tears away with his thumbs. “I love you more.”

  Those beautiful words only made her cry harder, but she managed to say, “I love you, too.”

  “I didn’t want you to mortgage your house. It’s been in your family a long time, and it means a lot to all of you.”

  “But you and your grandfather worked on that plane for years.” While her tears had tapered off, she still couldn’t understand his reasoning. “What will he think?”

  “When I talked to him yesterday, he thought it was a logical solution to the Peter problem. Besides, you should’ve seen Ken’s face. He’s like a kid who woke up Christmas morning and found a puppy under the tree.”

  Whether Ridge truly believed everything he was saying or not, Marianne recognized that he’d thought it through and was content with his decision. This man’s generosity was so endless, she couldn’t believe it was for real.

  “Are you sure about this?” she asked.

  “Ken will take good care of her, and he’ll have a blast flying her around to the shows.”

  Ridge had dodged her question, which was totally unlike him. “Right, but how do you feel about that?”

  “I’m good with it,” he said as he steered her toward the house. “Maybe someday I’ll get another plane. Right now, we’ve got a big game to play.”

  Pulling him to a stop, she gazed up at him and smiled. There was really no way to properly thank Ridge for the tremendous sacrifice he’d made for her family.

  Marianne prayed the kiss she gave him would be a start.

  * * *

  Championship Sunday started in church.

  As a special treat, Pastor Charles had asked everyone to come dressed in their Wildcats gear. The fans took his suggestion to heart and wore their best blue and gold. The kids were quite a sight, with all those shoulder pads and pompoms jammed into the old wooden pews. After a quick sermon, he said a prayer for everyone to be safe during the game.

  Then he slipped on his own Wildcats cap and motioned to the organist. The congregation filed out, accompanied by the rousing Notre Dame fight song. Marianne couldn’t recall ever hearing something like that in church, and she flashed a smile at the inventive pastor. Grinning back, he escorted his wife and younger children down the aisle. Outside, everyone formed a long caravan of honking cars that headed out to the field.

  It was a hard-fought game between Harland, last year’s runners-up, and the Kenwood Mustangs, the defending champions. As the final seconds ticked away, Charlie called his last time-out. Huddling with his coaches and players, he turned to Ridge.

  Reading his lips, Marianne saw him say, Whatcha got? Ridge’s back was to her, so she didn’t catch the response. Everyone in the circle let out a whoop and jumped up and down, obviously excited by whatever he’d suggested.

  As they lined up, she heard the quarterback yelling out the play, “Betsy! Betsy! Betsy!”

  Oh boy, she thought with a grin. This one must be a doozy.

  Her heart in her throat, Marianne stood, along with half the population of Harland. More nervous than she’d ever been, her eyes went from the shifting formation of players to the clock. Five seconds. Three seconds. Finally, the center snapped the ball to the quarterback. For better or worse, this would be the last play of the game.


  Chaos erupted everywhere as the young quarterback looked for his two receivers standing twenty yards away. They were waving their hands, which made the Kenwood coaches and parents yell, “It’s a pass!” Four Kenwood defenders scattered downfield to block a throw. Marianne didn’t know much about football strategy, but even she understood that meant there were four fewer players on the line.

  Suddenly, there was a lot of hollering at the line of scrimmage, but it was too late. A fierce skirmish broke out on one side, as Kyle and Elisa Franks teamed up to make a hole. Danny Hodges grabbed the ball from the quarterback’s hands and darted through the opening before any of the Mustangs could react.

  Running like the thoroughbred Ridge had compared him to months ago, Danny flew forty yards down the sideline and into the end zone. Marianne didn’t think his feet touched the ground until they crossed the goal line.

  The hometown crowd erupted with joy, screaming to the players and hugging each other in the stands. The fence kept them off the field, but they rushed down to circle it, shouting their approval to the kids and coaches.

  As the team mom, Marianne was allowed in with the players, and today she took full advantage of that privilege. One of the assistants opened the gate for her, and she raced through, sweeping her son right off his cleats. And for once, he didn’t scold her for doing it.

  “We won, Mom!” he crowed, hugging her ferociously. “We did it!”

  Her throat clogged with pride, she laughed. “You sure did. You guys were awesome!”

  He hugged her again, then slid down to jump onto the pile of players stacking up midfield in a group celebration. Concerned about Emily getting trampled in all that mayhem, Marianne was relieved to find her little cheerleader assistant safely perched on Ridge’s shoulders. It seemed like a fitting picture, since he’d taken so much of Marianne’s burden on those wide shoulders of his.

  Still a romantic, she chided herself with a sigh. After being pragmatic for so long, it was actually nice to know she hadn’t lost all her dreaminess.

  “We won, Mommy!” Emily cheered, waving her honorary pompoms over her head. “Wasn’t Danny great?”