by Emmy Eugene
“Momma said for us to go wait in the truck,” Kadence said. “You can keep the painting.”
Russ surveyed the kitchen again, but Janelle was gone. “All right.” He reached for Kadence’s hand, another sense of satisfaction and love moving through him as they went outside and walked down the sidewalk to his truck together.
In the truck, he fired up the engine and turned on the heat. It wasn’t freezing, but the thunderstorms had returned to the Hill Country. He wanted to ask Kadence about her dad, but he didn’t dare. He didn’t want to use a seven-year-old to get information, and he’d have to figure out how to deal with Henry in his life if a relationship with Janelle made it very far.
So he swallowed the questions, and asked Kadence instead about what she’d done last week.
“We made gingerbread houses,” she said. “And cookies. And Daddy took us to this stocking class. Kelly called me a baby because I couldn’t use the sewing machine, and Momma finished mine for me. Daddy told Kelly not to call me a baby, and she didn’t for a whole day.” The little girl continued to talk, and Russ listened to her high-pitched voice with happiness streaming through his soul.
He knew Henry had cheated on Janelle, and while he couldn’t fathom that, he also didn’t understand how the man had risked his family. These little girls were precious, and Russ wanted to be a good father.
The front door opened twenty minutes later, and Kelly walked out with Janelle right behind her. Neither of them looked happy, but Russ got out of the truck and opened the back door for Kelly.
“Kelly,” Janelle said, her voice full of warning.
“I’m sorry, sir,” she said, looking up at him. She’d obviously been crying, and her chin wobbled now too. “I’m glad we get to go to breakfast together today. It was fun at your ranch last weekend.” She looked at Janelle, who nodded exactly once. “Can we come back out there tomorrow night? I hear your brother is coming back from a vacation.”
Russ chuckled and crouched down in front of the ten-year-old. “He sure is. And you can come to the ranch anytime you want. You, or Kadence, or your momma.” He looked up at Janelle, who looked like she wanted to crawl back into bed, not go to breakfast.
“Thank you for the apology.” Russ drew the little girl into a hug, and surprisingly, Kelly gripped his shoulders as she hugged him back. “And you should maybe apologize to Kadence,” he whispered as that same powerful emotion he’d felt earlier raced through him again.
He released her, and Kelly stepped back. She climbed in the truck, and Russ heard her say, “I’m sorry for ripping your painting, Kade,” in her most sincere voice.
Russ looked at Janelle, who lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “We’re kind of a mess,” she said. “I’m surprised you haven’t run screaming yet.”
Russ drew her into a hug too, not sure what to say. Maybe there was nothing to say. Maybe she just needed to know he wasn’t going to run screaming, but that he actually liked her and her kids, no matter what.
“I’m not sure what time Seth and Jenna will be back,” he said. “But why don’t you guys plan on coming out about six? I’ll make sure there’s something to eat then.”
“I won’t be intruding on your brotherly Sunday afternoon?”
“Nope,” he said. “Six o’clock isn’t afternoon, baby.” He stepped back and walked her around the truck to the passenger door. On his way around the hood, he made a mental note to get a text out to the brothers about having Janelle and her kids out to the homestead at six tomorrow night.
Change of plans, Russ sent to Janelle. Dinner and games at Jenna’s house at six. He almost expected Janelle to cancel, but she sent a thumbs-up emoji and the words, We’ll be there.
He’d welcomed Seth back to the ranch. Travis and Russ had shown Seth the dog enclosure, and he’d been thrilled. They’d eaten lunch with just the brothers, as Russ had asked to bring Janelle and her kids to the game night at Jenna’s.
Travis had said he wanted to pull back from the ranch, and that he wanted to build a house near the ranch’s entrance. Russ wasn’t sure how he felt about it. He’d lived with Seth and Travis for a few year now, and he didn’t want to be in the homestead alone.
Don’t get too far ahead of yourself, he told himself again. Travis wasn’t even talking to Millie right now, and it took a few months—at least—to build a house.
Russ hadn’t even talked to Janelle about marriage yet. Things between them felt like they moved really fast sometimes and then slowed way down at other times. They were in a slow period at the moment, and Russ was okay with that.
He went upstairs and surveyed the bags on the coffee table in the upstairs family room. He’d bought three different patterns of wrapping paper, and he started by pulling out the painting kit he’d bought for Kadence and wrapping it in the red and white checkered paper. He wasn’t in the habit of wrapping gifts, and he struggled to get the package wrapped so it looked like a grown man had done it.
He continued wrapping her gifts—a new scooter, a jump rope, a ten-DVD set of Disney movies, an easy-bake oven, and several dog bandanas. Kadence liked taking care of the dogs, but she couldn’t do as much as her mom or Kelly. The bandanas would allow her to dress them up and feel accomplished.
Kelly was much harder to shop for, and Russ probably should’ve consulted with Janelle before buying anything. But he’d asked the department store clerk for the single best piece of kitchen equipment for a child who loved to cook, and she’d said a stand mixer—the same thing Kelly had already mentioned to him.
And it was heavy, and Russ thought the wrapping job looked like Winner had done it with her four paws. Since the mixer had cost so much, he’d gotten Kelly a few smaller things—rubber spatulas and a set of stainless steel measuring cups, along with a cookbook of desserts made specifically with pie dough.
He needed something more for her that wasn’t associated with the kitchen, but he hadn’t found it yet. And he had nothing for Janelle. They’d planned a holiday celebration for Saturday, and five days didn’t feel like long enough for him to get the just-right gift for her.
But he would.
“Russ,” Travis called, a measure of excitement in his voice that made Russ lift his head quickly.
“I’m upstairs,” he said.
Travis came thundering up the steps, and he paused to take in the gift wrapping center. “Oh.” His chest heaved. “What is all this?”
“Christmas for Janelle and the girls.” Russ stood up and wiped his hands together. “What’s goin’ on?”
“Millie just texted to say she got a job.”
“Wow, did you call her?” Russ wanted to grab his phone and look at it.
“No, she texted me out of the blue.”
“Okay, so this is perfect,” he said. “Did you respond?”
“Not yet.”
Russ smiled at the pure terror on his brother’s face. “Okay, you need to respond.” He started thumbing something out on his phone, and Russ said, “Read it out loud to me.”
“That’s so great, baby. Congrats.” He looked up at Russ with questions in his eyes.
“Yes, send that.”
He did and then met Russ’s eye again. “And?”
“And what, Travis? Do you want to get back together with her or not?”
“Yes,” he said quickly. “Yes, I so want to get back together with her.”
“Okay,” Russ said. “Where did she get a job?”
“Furniture Row. She starts tomorrow.”
“What time does the store open?”
“I have no idea.”
“Probably ten.” Russ’s mind fired at a million miles a minute. “So here’s what you do. You’ve got that desk you built for her for Christmas, right?”
“Right.”
“So you call Chantelle down there, and you tell her you need just ten minutes before they open.”
“Ten minutes for what?”
“To give Millie her Christmas present,” Russ said. “And tell her what y
ou want for Christmas.” He nudged Travis out of the way and started for the stairs.
“Wait,” his brother said behind him. “What do I want for Christmas?” His footsteps sounded panicked behind Russ’s.
“Her,” he called over his shoulder. When he reached the bottom of the steps, he turned back to his brother. “Travis, you want her.”
Travis looked like he might throw up, but he nodded. “Okay, so I call Chantelle.” His phone buzzed, and he glanced at it. “Millie wants to meet about the party. We do need to do that.”
“You only have room for one thing in your life right now,” Russ said. “And that’s getting Millie back. You can talk about the party tomorrow.”
“Right.” Travis tucked his phone in his back pocket. “Okay. I show up at Furniture Row with the desk. Say it’s her Christmas gift and I only want one thing for Christmas.”
“Yes.” Russ went into the kitchen to pour himself a cup of coffee.
“So I need something that says ‘you’ on it.” He opened a drawer and pulled out a piece of paper. He wrote the three letters on it and held it up, his eyebrows lifted.
Russ almost spewed his coffee out of his mouth. “You can’t even read that.” He chuckled, the laughter filling the room soon afterward. “Try again.”
Travis did, a few more times, getting more and more frustrated with each attempt.
“Wait, wait,” Russ said. “I’ve got this. Just a sec.” He pulled out his phone and called Janelle. “Hey, baby.”
Travis looked like he might deck Russ, so he held up his hand in a universal sign of just wait.
“Hey, what’s up?”
“Can you have Kadence bring out some art supplies tonight? My brother needs help with a project, and she’s just the person to do it.”
“Art supplies?” Travis looked so confused.
“Sure,” Janelle said. “She’ll love that.”
“Thanks, baby.” He hung up and grinned at his brother. “There. Done. Kadence will make you a pretty paper that says you on it. Done.”
“Thank goodness.” Travis sagged onto the nearest barstool. “Thanks, Russ.”
“Sure thing, brother.” Russ patted Travis on the shoulder. “Plus, you’re helping me by keeping the girls busy.”
“Rough time with them?”
“Kind of,” Russ said with a sigh. He sat down at the counter too and sipped his coffee. “But it’s still great. I really like Janelle.”
“Yeah, I saw all those presents upstairs.”
“None of them are for her.” Russ cut a look at Travis out of the corner of his eye. “I could use some help with that.”
“Gift ideas for your girlfriend?” Travis rolled his shoulders as if he were gearing up for the battle of his life. “All right. Let’s brainstorm.”
Chapter Twenty
Janelle walked between her two girls as they walked up to the front door of a beautiful home that stood proudly on some of the most beautiful land Janelle had ever seen. Her nerves rattled around her ribcage, but she managed to climb the steps and ring the doorbell.
This was more of an estate than anything, and Janelle absolutely loved it. She could just see herself living in a place like this, with a lot of rooms, big windows, and merry Christmas lights twinkling into the twilight.
The double doors opened, and a tall man stood there. “Janelle Stokes,” he said, sending a huge belly laugh into the air in the next moment. Seth Johnson engulfed her in a hug and just as quickly let her go. “And these must be your girls. Let’s see…Russ told me your names.”
Kadence giggled, and Janelle herself couldn’t help grinning like a fool. Seth’s enthusiasm was simply infectious.
“Kelly,” he said to the right girl. “And Kadence. Ah, yes, you have the art kit. Travis is going to be so happy to see you.” He stepped back. “Come in, come in.”
Janelle didn’t have to nudge the girls to get them to enter, and she willingly stepped inside too. Noise came from the back of the house, and Seth led them in that direction. The table had a stack of paper on it, and Kadence went skipping over to the cowboy there.
Travis looked relieved as he caught sight of her, and he jumped to his feet and gave her his chair. Janelle looked around for Russ, but she couldn’t see him. Jenna stood in the kitchen with Rex, and they were talking about something she couldn’t hear over the music playing throughout the house.
“He’s coming,” Seth said. “He stopped to pick up the boys.”
“The boys?”
“Yeah, Darren, Tomas, and Brian?”
“Oh, right.” Janelle took a cup of steaming hot chocolate from Griffin, who joined them in a three-way huddle.
“So I have a question for you,” Griffin said, lifting his hot chocolate to his lips.
Janelle braced herself. She often got legal questions, and she’d just be sure to give him a disclaimer about how he needed to hire a real lawyer. She shot a glance at Seth, whose smile felt a little fake now.
“All right,” she said.
“There’s a woman who works at your law office,” Griffin said. He cleared his throat, a definite flush crawling into his face. “A Libby Harward?”
Janelle didn’t want to give too much away, so she simply nodded. “Yes, I know Libby.”
“Do you happen to know if she’s seein’ anyone?” Griffin coughed, but he held his ground.
“I happen to know she is not seeing anyone right now,” Janelle said. “And I happen to have her phone number.” She held up her phone and waggled it back and forth. “Do you want it?”
“You’d give it to me?” Griffin asked, looking at the phone like it was a juicy steak and he hadn’t eaten for a month.
“Let me text her and find out if it’s okay first,” Janelle said, firing off a text to Libby in a matter of seconds.
“What did you say to her?” Griffin asked, swallowing.
Janelle turned her phone to Griffin, who read aloud, “Hey, I’m with the Johnson brothers. Do you care if I give your number to one of them?”
“Good?” Janelle asked. Griffin Johnson was so cute, and Libby would look darling on his arm. Excitement flowed through Janelle as Griffin nodded.
“Yeah, great.”
Her phone chimed, and she turned it back to her. “Oh, it’s Libby,” she singsonged.
“What did she say?” Griffin asked.
“Settle down,” Seth said, almost under his breath.
Janelle read the text and pressed her device to her collarbone, her own pulse firing. “Oh.”
“What did she say?” Griffin asked again.
“I don’t want to read it out loud,” Janelle said.
“She said no, didn’t she?” Griffin turned away, clearly disappointed.
Janelle looked at Seth. “What’s his number? I’ll text him Libby’s number.”
“She said yes?”
She handed Seth her phone, and he quickly read the messages. “Oh, okay. I’ll delete these and you can text him the number.” He tapped a couple of times and handed the phone back, a smile on his face. “I mean, I happen to agree with her. Rex is a special kind of man.” He chuckled, and Janelle was glad Seth hadn’t taken offense to what Libby had said.
Only if it’s Griffin. That Rex is too loud for me.
Seth gave her Griffin’s number, and she sent him Libby’s contact info. She watched him pull his phone out and check the text, only to spin back to her, a huge grin spreading across his face. “Thanks, Janelle.” He hurried away, his thumbs already moving over the screen.
Janelle giggled at the same time laughter filled the room as Travis and the girls had obviously just done something funny. She stepped away from Seth to see what they were doing, and Travis held up a pathetic looking paper that appeared to have the word “you” on it. At least Janelle thought that’s what it was supposed to say.
The front door opened, and Russ said, “We’re here.”
Janelle’s heartbeat went wild, and she quivered in anticipation for him to walk a
cross the room and join the party in the kitchen.
“Y’all didn’t eat without us, did you?” He set a huge slow cooker on the kitchen counter.
“We couldn’t eat without you,” Rex said. “You have the main dish.”
“Finally,” Seth said. “Let’s eat.”
Janelle loved the energy and vibrancy of this family and their ranch hands. She fit here, and she felt it keenly. Everyone spoke to her girls, and Travis helped Kadence through the line while Kelly went through in front of Seth.
Janelle hung back with Russ, curling her arm around his back and leaning into his side.
Russ pressed his lips to her temple and said, “Hey, baby. How’s your day?”
“Better now,” she said, smiling up at him.
“I’d kiss you,” he whispered, his lips getting dangerously close to hers. “But Rex is already glaring my face off, and I’m starving.”
She laughed along with Russ, and they joined the line for pulled pork. This party and time with Russ was exactly what she needed after a tumultuous week of doubt and worry. She knew as soon as Henry came back into the picture, her thoughts would scramble, and she concentrated extra-hard to be able to hold onto these specific memories.
She enjoyed herself immensely during dinner. During game night. While Travis explained his plan to get Millie back. And when Russ took her hand and leaned down to say something to Seth, Janelle felt like she’d lost twenty years of her life as she snuck out the back door and into the chilly night.
“Ah,” Russ sighed as the door closed behind them, sealing most of the noise in the house. Janelle admitted the quiet night sure was refreshing, and she drew in a long, deep breath of the winter air.
“So, family party on Friday night,” she said. “Our Christmas celebration on Saturday.”
“Right,” Russ said. “Six for dinner on Friday. At least that’s the plan right now. Travis will know more when he talks to her tomorrow.”
