by Lori Foster
“Very much so.” Autumn leaned back to grin at her. “You made quite the rescue.”
Her mother blushed, then blushed more when Tash leaned in to kiss her cheek.
“Very impressive, Tracy.” Tash smiled. “Thank you.”
“She’s my daughter.” Tracy lifted her nose. “No one bullies her but me.”
Autumn laughed again. Maybe her mother’s brand of bullying wasn’t so bad.
“You should be in bed resting,” Tracy announced.
Luckily, Tash saved her. “I was leading her to the couch. She’s had enough of the bed for a while.” To Autumn, he said, “You could read while I help Mike and Ember finish up, then Sadie can visit for a minute. She’s missed you.”
That sounded like an excellent plan. She only had one chapter left in her Karen Rose book and she couldn’t wait to get to the end...because then she could start the next one.
The idea of crashing in ultimate comfort appealed, but her mother insisted on helping. She conceded that Autumn could rest on the couch as long as she had her feet up, a light throw blanket handy to counter the air-conditioning and she must consume another bottle of water.
Because her mom was currently one of her favorite people, Autumn didn’t argue. Several minutes later she was finally ready to pick up her book when her mother took a seat beside her.
Knowing her mom had something on her mind, Autumn asked, “Everything okay?”
“Now that you’re feeling better, yes.”
And...that obviously didn’t cover it, because Autumn remained under her mother’s close scrutiny. “What’s wrong, Mom?”
“I’m not used to seeing you down.” Tracy blew out a shuddering breath as if releasing pent-up worries. “The doctor kept stressing what an awful virus this is, and how it zaps energy levels, so it wasn’t unexpected that you’d sleep so much. But knowing the facts didn’t matter to my heart. You’re always such a stalwart example of pride, determination and responsibility all rolled into one remarkable daughter. Seeing you sick in bed...it shook me.”
Remorse tightened Autumn’s chest. “I’m so sorry, Mom.”
As if she hadn’t spoken, her mother continued on. “And yet I had fun. The animals, especially when seen through Sadie’s eyes, are an absolute delight.” Assuming Autumn didn’t already know it, she said, “They each have individual personalities!”
“Yes,” Autumn agreed, her smile breaking through. “Much like children.”
Her mother waved off the hint. “I’ve helped watch Sadie in the evenings, too. Not overnight or anything—Ember insisted she keep her—but I’ve been teaching her how to work with clay. She’s gifted, you know. A very smart child.”
“Very cute, too,” Autumn concurred, enjoying her mother’s newfound gusto.
That is, until her gaze snapped up to Autumn’s.
Uh-oh, Autumn thought, familiar with that expression.
Her mother’s chin firmed and her brows leveled. She stated with conviction, “I want Sadie for a grandchild.”
The bold declaration took Autumn by surprise. “Um, Mom—”
“I want her.” She grabbed Autumn’s hands. “Sadie and I are good together. She makes me feel young and she makes your father laugh.”
Autumn tried a smile, but it fell flat. “That’s wonderful, but—”
“Do you know, Sadie can offer Flynn anything, even vegetables he abhors, and he’ll eat them! Gladly. The man has never consumed more healthy food, and without a single argument from me.”
Feeling her way, Autumn gave a small nod. “Sadie would be hard to refuse.”
“And Tash,” she happily gushed, pressing a hand to her heart. “Oh, Autumn, you could do worse than that one. Such a charmer he is, so very handsome, and a hard worker. He’d take on anything without complaining, and he’d do it well, too.” She nodded to affirm it all as truth.
The lump forming in Autumn’s throat now wasn’t quite so pleasant, and was, in fact, bordering on painful. “Yes, Mom, he’s quite a catch.” A catch who currently had his hands full...and she’d added to his burden.
“He’s exhausted, you know,” her mom added, easily reading the concern on Autumn’s face. “Luckily he didn’t get sick, but he’s been burning the candle on both ends and in the middle, too! Caring for Sadie and you, working the farm during the day and on his computer half the night.”
Guilt was a terrible thing. “I know.”
Her mother gave her a light shove. “Well, then do something about it.”
Good grief. Her mom went from loving on her to scolding her to sounding downright annoyed. “It’s not like I planned to get sick.”
“Of course you didn’t! But if you two shared a household, neither one of you would have to work as hard.” Her mother rushed on before Autumn could finish gasping. “Sadie loves it here and she told me she misses Tracy the cow whenever she goes home, even though she’s thrilled with her new bedroom. Just think how nice it would be to tuck that little angel into bed each night.”
It would be heaven...except Tash hadn’t said anything about being in love with her, not directly, anyway, but he had been clear about his priorities—priorities that had apparently flown the coop when she got ill.
Remorse surfaced, making Autumn sink into the couch. “This is awful.”
“But it doesn’t have to be, that’s what I’m saying.”
The connecting door opened and Ember came in, along with their dad. They were laughing together, until they realized they’d blundered into a serious discussion.
Silence fell with heavy condemnation, then Ember demanded, “What’s going on?” Circling the couch, she sat on the coffee table near Autumn’s feet. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, yes.” Physically, anyway. “Much improved, thanks.”
Ember’s eyes narrowed as she shifted her accusing gaze to their mother. “What did you do to upset her?”
Chin going up again, their mom said, “I only told Autumn the truth.”
“What truth?” Ember asked.
Their father’s wheelchair made a light buzzing noise as he propelled himself forward and around to face them. His eyebrows twitched as he took in the expression of first one daughter, then the other, and finally his wife. He nodded. “Need to marry the boy.”
Autumn’s mouth dropped open. “Dad.” How in the world had he surmised the conversation so quickly?
“That,” her mother insisted, “is the truth, and the only solution.”
“It’s not a solution at all!” Her parents had leaped far past anything that was possible and Autumn wasn’t sure how to rein them back in.
And yet, after a thoughtful second, even Ember agreed. “It’s not a bad idea, Autumn. You know you want him.”
She couldn’t believe they ganged up on her like this, as if her wants were the only issues at stake. “I should have stayed in the bed!”
Snorting, her mom patted her knee. “You’ve never shirked a day in your life. No way would you start now.”
“Marry ’im,” her dad demanded again. “We’ll keep ’em both.”
“They’re not pets to be brought to the farm, Dad. Tash has his own house, newly remodeled, by the way, to perfectly suit him and his daughter.”
“You’re not there,” her mother said, “so it does not perfectly suit them at all.”
If only that was a valid point. “His house is not set up for a third, and neither is my place.”
“Don’t be silly. We have room.” Ember looked around. “I spend all my time with Mike, anyway, and I could easily turn this back into a single home rather than a duplex. It’d just be a matter of—”
“He hasn’t asked!” If no one else would face reality, Autumn would do it for them.
With everyone now staring at her, she wanted to groan. She hadn’t meant to bark that out there, but seriously,
just because she wasn’t passed out in the bed did not mean she was one hundred percent yet. She didn’t think she’d ever be ready for this particular full-family discussion.
“This one here,” her mother grumbled, pointing at Ember, “didn’t sit around waiting for a proposal.”
“No I didn’t,” Ember agreed.
“Ember,” her mother stressed with pride, “went after what she wanted.”
“Because she’s the free spirit.” Autumn crossed her arms, belligerence personified. “I’m the stalwart one, remember? With big bones and perspiration and—”
“Look like yer mother,” her dad snapped. “Beautiful.”
Tracy preened. “Thank you, Flynn.” Then she took Autumn’s hands and there wasn’t a single thing Autumn could do about it.
“You are my beautiful, brave, caring daughter. You make me so proud every day.”
“Us,” Flynn interjected. “Make us proud.”
Awww. That heartfelt declaration stole every ounce of Autumn’s irritation. “Thank you, both.”
“But if you muck this up,” her mom vowed, “I will be so—so...”
Eyebrows up, Autumn waited to see what dire consequence her mother would name.
“Sorry for you. I will be so incredibly sorry for you, Autumn, because Tash is obviously the one for you.”
Well. An outright insult would be easier than pity.
“I’ll ask ’im,” her father snapped as he started to furiously roll away a little faster than his usual easy pace.
Oh. Dear. God. Shot through with panic, Autumn turned a pleading do-something gaze on her sister.
Smiling, Ember stood and caught one handle on the chair. “Not how it’s done, Dad, believe me. Besides, Autumn will take care of it. She’s too smart not to.” Keeping a firm grip on their father’s chair so he couldn’t get away, Ember asked, “Isn’t that right, sis?”
They all looked at Autumn with varying degrees of expectation.
She slumped. “Yes, I’ll handle it.” Somehow. But she couldn’t handle it this very minute. Hoping it would appease them all for now, she promised, “Soon.”
Her dad leveled her with a long look. “Beautiful. ’Member that.”
Autumn managed a smile for him. “Thanks, Dad. Love you.”
“Love you, too.”
“Caring,” her mother added. “Smart and capable and generous. Sometimes too damn generous.”
Since her mother rarely cursed, both sisters watched her in stunned silence.
“Tash is the first man I’ve met who deserves you.” With a stern scowl, her mother pleaded, “Don’t let him leave here without a commitment.”
Nodding, Autumn whispered, “Thank you.” She could barely get the words out, and sounded a little broken when she whispered, “I love you, Mom.”
“And I love you.” Standing, her attitude all-business, she turned to Ember and said, “Convince her.”
“Yeah.” Ember grinned. “I’ll do my best.”
Finally her mother and father left, mumbling to themselves about the many trials of parenting.
Autumn dropped her head back on the couch, and squeezed her eyes shut.
“What,” Ember asked, “was that?”
“Love.” Autumn heaved a sigh. “I think that was love and now I’ll never be able to complain about her again.”
“Don’t go overboard.” Ember dropped down beside her. “This moment will fade, I promise. It was nice, though, huh? Almost brought a tear to my eye.”
Autumn snorted, then sighed again when a new worry intruded. “What if they accost Tash?”
“He’s a big boy, he can handle it.” Ember nudged her. “But they won’t—at least not yet. Mom’s counting on you to man up and do the right thing, mostly because you always do the right thing, right?”
That convoluted sentence left Autumn confused. “What?”
“The right thing.” She shrugged. “You always do it.”
“This wasn’t right.” Autumn gestured at her house. “Keeping Tash here, interrupting his life, disrupting his daughter’s schedule—”
“All at his insistence.”
“I should have refused.
Ember leaned back to stare at her. “Okay, so maybe where men are concerned, you’ve made some mistakes. God knows you’re misjudging Tash now, but then I did some misjudging of my own, so I won’t hold that against you. Mom and Dad, though...” She let that hang. “They’re really attached to Tash and Sadie.”
Autumn slanted her a look. “You scored big points with Mike. That should tide them over.”
“True. In the two years Mike’s been here, they’ve grown to care a lot for him. Sometimes they like him more than they like us.” She leaned into Autumn, snuggling close with her head on her shoulder and her arm across her waist. “Think about it, sis. It only took Tash a few days to steal their hearts.”
Struck by that, Autumn’s brows went up. She had her mom and dad both fighting to keep Tash, something they’d never done before. “Amazing.”
“You have no idea. Tash has Mom completely bowled over. Around him, she giggles.”
No, Autumn refused to imagine it.
“Dad can’t say enough good things about him. They both think he’s the most amazing father they’ve ever met.” She laughed softly, tipping her face up to see Autumn. “After all, he has to be since Sadie is so perfect.”
Thinking of Sadie made it impossible not to smile. “She is pretty special.”
“So.” Ember sat up, turning on the couch to sit yoga-style so that she faced Autumn. “Proposing isn’t so tough, I promise. I’ll do it for you if you want.”
That outrageous offer surprised a laugh out of her. If Tash refused, would Ember threaten him? Probably. “I’ll figure it out.” Somehow. Truthfully, just the thought unsettled her stomach.
“Yeah, well do it soon because odds are he’ll feel the need to move back home now that you’re feeling better, and we’ll all miss him if he does.”
Shoot. Would he try to leave tonight? Autumn looked toward the window, but this time of the year the sun lingered until late.
“Plus, we can still use his help around here. You’re going to need another day of taking it easy before you dive back in. No argument,” Ember said before Autumn could deny her dictate. “You know it’s true.”
Okay, so she did still feel washed out. She could push through. Maybe. “Ugh. You could be right.”
Pulling her into a hug, Ember whispered, “Mom is right, you know. Tash definitely deserves you—and you, my crazy, too-damn-perfect sister, more than deserve him. Remember that.”
Before Autumn realized it, Ember slipped away, leaving through the connecting door.
She would have felt abandoned except that Pavlov came charging in, thrilled to see her. He made an agile leap up to the couch, crowded close and covered her face with doggy kisses.
Laughing, Autumn corralled him a little to the side while crooning to him. “Did you have a good day, buddy? You kept an eye on Mom, didn’t you? Such a good dog.”
Tail swinging wildly, Pavlov rolled to his back, his head in her lap, and more or less demanded a belly rub.
That’s how Tash and Sadie found them a few minutes later.
Autumn took one look at his face...and she knew. Tonight would be it, unless she spoke up. More than her mom or dad did, more than Ember or Mike could, she wanted Tash to be with her always. She wanted him to share her life. She needed him and Sadie to be close.
Because she loved them both.
Maybe it was time she told them so.
Chapter Eighteen
“Autumn!” Sadie ran to the couch with unending energy. It amazed Tash that the more Sadie did, the more she wanted to do. Everything from helping groom the animals to spreading straw, creating art and playing hard, she never tired.
Around his dynamo of a daughter, Tracy was a different person, not as outspoken, and more mindful of her words.
And Flynn! What a softie. The elder Somerset loved it that Sadie didn’t hesitate to crowd close to his chair and gift him with hugs and cheek kisses.
“I don’t have to wear a mask anymore ’cuz Dad said you’re not ’tagious now.” She proved that by going straight to Autumn’s lap for a tight hug around her neck.
“I’ve missed you, Sadie,” Autumn said, making room for her on the couch.
Pavlov didn’t mind, but then he adored Sadie, too, and had become her near-constant shadow.
Cupping Autumn’s face in her small hands, Sadie studied her. “You feel better?”
“Much, much better. Thank you.”
“Dad was real worried.”
“Was he?” Autumn glanced at him. “He makes an amazing nurse.”
Sadie got so close, her nose nearly touched Autumn’s when she whispered, “He’s really good at everything.”
That smile, the way Autumn’s entire face lit up, her blue eyes twinkling as she held his daughter—he was pretty sure that was as close to heaven as a man could get while still breathing.
Damn, he loved them both so much.
Voice as soft as Sadie’s had been, Autumn answered, “I know. We’re pretty darned lucky, huh?”
Sadie twisted around to sit beside her, tucked against Autumn’s side under her arm and proceeded to tell her everything she’d done over the last few days. Autumn made appropriate sounds of surprise, laughed when she should and occasionally squeezed Sadie closer.
But all the while, her gaze held his.
Tash knew he was caught. Irrevocably, happily, madly in love. Now he just needed to figure out how to handle it.
When Sadie wound down ten minutes later, Tash decided it was a good time to intervene. “You should get your bath, honey, before it gets any later.”
Sadie said, “He means me.”
Autumn laughed. “Thanks for clarifying.”
