A Stone Creek Collection, Volume 2

by Linda Lael Miller

  “Well?” Ashley prompted.

  “I’m not a doctor, Ash,” he said. “All I can tell you for sure is, he’s breathing.”

  “That’s helpful,” Ashley said.

  He chuckled, and the sound, though rueful, consoled her a little. He turned one of the chairs around backward, and straddled it, setting his mug on the table.

  “Why do men like to sit like that?” Ashley wondered aloud.

  He grinned. “You’ve been alone too long,” he answered.

  Ashley blushed, brought her tea to the table and sat down. “What am I going to do?” she asked.

  Brad inclined his head toward the ceiling. “About McCall? That’s up to you, sis. If you want him out of here, I can have him airlifted to Flagstaff within a couple hours.”

  This was no idle boast. Even though he’d retired from the country-music scene several years before, at least as far as concert tours went, Brad still wrote and recorded songs, and he could have stacked his royalty checks like so much cordwood. On top of that, Meg was a McKettrick, a multimillionaire in her own right. One phone call from either one of them, and a sleek jet would be landing outside of town in no time at all, fully equipped and staffed with doctors and nurses.

  Ashley bit her lower lip. God knew why, but Jack wanted to stay at her place, and he’d gone through a lot to get there. As impractical as it was, given his condition, she didn’t think she could turn him out.

  Brad must have read her face. He reached out, took her hand. “You still love the bastard,” he said. “Don’t you?”

  “I don’t know,” she answered miserably. She’d definitely loved the man she’d known before, but this was a new Jack, a different Jack. The real one, she supposed. It shook her to realize she’d given her heart to an illusion.

  “It’s okay, Ashley.”

  She shook her head, started to cry again. “Nothing is okay,” she argued.

  “We can make it that way,” Brad offered quietly. “All we have to do is talk.”

  She dried her eyes on the sleeve of Jack’s old shirt. It seemed ironic, given all the things hanging in her closet, that she’d chosen to wear that particular garment when she’d gotten dressed that morning. Had some part of her known, somehow, that Jack was coming home?

  Brad was waiting for an answer, and he wouldn’t break eye contact until he got one.

  Ashley swallowed hard. “Our mother died,” she said, cornered. “Our mother. And you and Olivia and Melissa all seemed—relieved.”

  A muscle in Brad’s jaw tightened, relaxed again. He sighed and shoved a hand through his hair. “I guess I was relieved,” he admitted. “They said she didn’t suffer, but I always wondered—” He paused, cleared his throat. “I wondered if she was in there somewhere, hurting, with no way to ask for help.”

  Ashley’s heart gave one hard beat, then settled into its normal pace again. “You didn’t hate her?” she asked, stunned.

  “She was my mother,” Brad said. “Of course I didn’t hate her.”

  “Things might have been so different—”

  “Ashley,” Brad broke in, “things weren’t different. That’s the point. Delia’s gone, for good this time. You’ve got to let go.”

  “What if I can’t?” Ashley whispered.

  “You don’t have a choice, Button.”

  Button. Their grandfather had called both her and Melissa by that nickname; like most twins, they were used to sharing things. “Do you miss Big John as much as I do?” she asked.

  “Yes,” Brad answered, without hesitation, his voice still gruff. He looked down at his coffee mug for a second or so, then raised his gaze to meet Ashley’s again. “Same thing,” he said. “He’s gone. And letting go is something I have to do about three times a day.”

  Ashley got up, suddenly unable to sit still. She brought the coffee carafe to the table and refilled Brad’s cup. She spoke very quietly. “But it was a one-time thing, letting go of Mom?”

  “Yeah,” Brad said. “And it happened a long, long time ago. I remember it distinctly—it was the night my high school basketball team took the state championship. I was sure she’d be in the bleachers, clapping and cheering like everybody else. She wasn’t, of course, and that was when I got it through my head that she wasn’t coming back—ever.”

  Ashley’s heart ached. Brad was her big brother; he’d always been strong. Why hadn’t she realized that he’d been hurt, too?

  “Big John stayed, Ashley,” he went on, while she sat there gulping. “He stuck around, through good times and bad. Even after he’d buried his only son, he kept on keeping on. Mom caught the afternoon bus out of town and couldn’t be bothered to call or even send a postcard. I did my mourning long before she died.”

  Ashley could only nod.

  Brad was quiet for a while, pondering, taking the occasional sip from his coffee mug. Then he spoke again. “Here’s the thing,” he said. “When the chips were down, I basically did the same thing as Mom—got on a bus and left Big John to take care of the ranch and raise the three of you all by himself—so I’m in no position to judge anybody else. Bottom line, Ash? People are what they are, and they do what they do, and you have to decide either to accept that or walk away without looking back.”

  Ashley managed a wobbly smile. Sniffled once. “I’m sorry I’m late on the mortgage payments,” she said.

  Brad rolled his eyes. “Like I’m worried,” he replied, his body making the subtle shifts that meant he’d be leaving soon. With one arm, he gestured to indicate the B&B. “Why won’t you just let me sign the place over to you?”

  “Would you do that,” Ashley challenged reasonably, “if our situations were reversed?”

  He flushed slightly, got to his feet. “No,” he admitted, “but—”

  “But what?”

  Brad grinned sheepishly, and his powerful shoulders shifted slightly under his shirt.

  “But you’re a man?” Ashley finished for him, when he didn’t speak. “Is that what you were going to say?”

  “Well, yeah,” Brad said.

  “You’ll have the mortgage payments as soon as I get a chance to run Jack’s credit card,” she told her brother, rising to walk him to the back door. Color suffused her cheeks. “Thanks for coming into town,” she added. “I feel like a fool for panicking.”

  In the midst of pulling on his jacket, Brad paused. “I’m a big brother,” he said, somewhat gruffly. “It’s what we do.”

  “Are you and Meg going to the hospital tomorrow, when Livie…?”

  Brad tugged lightly at her braid, the way he’d always done. “We’ll be hanging out by the telephone,” he said. “Livie swears it’s a normal procedure, and she doesn’t want everyone fussing ‘as if it were a heart transplant,’ as she put it.”

  Ashley bit down on her lower lip and nodded. She already had a nephew—Mac—and two nieces, Carly and Sophie, although technically Carly, Meg’s half sister, whom her dying father had asked her to raise, wasn’t really a niece. Tomorrow, another little one would join the family. Instead of being a nervous wreck, she ought to be celebrating.

  She wasn’t, she decided, so different from Sophie. Having effectively lost Delia when she was so young, she’d turned to Olivia as a substitute mother, as had Melissa. Had their devotion been a burden to their sister, only a few years older than they were, and grappling with her own sense of loss?

  She stood on tiptoe and kissed Brad’s cheek. “Thanks,” she said again. “Call if you hear anything.”

  Brad gave her braid another tug, turned and left the house.

  Ashley felt profoundly alone.

  * * *

  Jack had nearly flung himself at the singing cowboy standing at the foot of his bed, before recognizing him as Ashley’s famous brother, Brad. Even though the room had been dark, the other m
an must have seen him tense.

  “I know you’re awake, McCall,” he’d said.

  Jack had yawned. “O’Ballivan?”

  “Live and in person,” came the not-so-friendly reply.

  “And you’re sneaking around my room because…?”

  O’Ballivan had chuckled at that. Hooked his thumbs through his belt loops. “Because Ashley’s worried about you. And what worries my baby sister worries me, James Bond.”

  Ashley was worried about him? Something like elation flooded Jack. “Not for the same reasons, I suspect,” he said.

  Mr. Country Music had gripped the high, spooled rail at the foot of the bed and leaned forward a little to make his point. “Damned if I can figure out why you’d come back here, especially in the shape you’re in, after what happened last summer, except to take up where you left off.” He paused, gripped the rail hard enough that his knuckles showed white even in the gloom. “You hurt her again, McCall, and you have my solemn word—I’m gonna turn right around and hurt you. Are we clear on that?”

  Jack had smiled, not because he was amused, but because he liked knowing Ashley had folks to look after her when he wasn’t around—and when he was. “Oh, yeah,” Jack had replied. “We’re clear.”

  Obviously a man of few words, O’Ballivan had simply nodded, turned and walked out of the room.

  Remembering, Jack raised himself as high on the pillows as he could, strained to reach the lamp switch. The efforts, simple as they were, made him break out in a cold sweat, but at the same time, he felt his strength returning.

  He looked around the room, noting the flowered wallpaper, the pale rose carpeting, the intricate woodwork on the mantelpiece. Two girly chairs flanked the cold fireplace, and fat flakes of January snow drifted past the two sets of bay windows, both sporting seats beneath, covered by cheery cushions.

  It was a far cry from Walter Reed, he thought.

  An even further cry from the jungle hut where he’d hidden out for nearly three months, awaiting his chance to grab little Rachel Stockard, hustle her out of the country by boat and then a seaplane, and return her to her frantic mother.

  He’d been well paid for the job, but it was the memory of the mother-daughter reunion, after he’d surrendered the child to a pair of FBI agents and a Customs official in Atlanta, that made his throat catch more than two weeks after the fact.

  Through an observation window, he’d watched as Rachel scrambled out of the man’s arms and raced toward her waiting mother. Tears pouring down her face, Ardith Stockard had dropped to her knees, arms outspread, and gathered the little girl close. The two of them had clung to each other, both trembling.

  And then Ardith had raised her eyes, seen Jack through the glass, and mouthed the words, “Thank you.”

  He’d nodded, exhausted and already sick.

  Closing his eyes, Jack went back over the journey to South America, the long game of waiting and watching, finally finding the small, isolated country estate where Rachel had been taken after she was kidnapped from her maternal grandparents’ home in Phoenix, almost a year before.

  Even after locating the child, he hadn’t been able to make a move for more than a week—not until her father and his retinue of thugs had loaded a convoy of jeeps with drugs and firepower one day, and roared off down the jungle road, probably headed for a rendezvous with a boat moored off some hidden beach.

  Jack had soon ascertained that only the middle-aged cook—and he had reason not to expect opposition from her—and one guard stood between him and Rachel. He’d waited until dark, risking the return of the jeep convoy, then climbed to the terrace outside the child’s room.

  “Did you come to take me home to my mommy?” Rachel had shrilled, her eyes wide with hope, when he stepped in off the terrace, a finger to his lips.

  Her voice carried, and the guard burst in from the hallway, shouting in Spanish.

  There had been a brief struggle—Jack had felt something prick him in the side as the goon went down—but, hearing the sound of approaching vehicles in the distance, he hadn’t taken the time to wonder.

  He’d grabbed Rachel up under one arm and climbed over the terrace and back down the crumbling rock wall of the house, with its many foot-and handholds, to the ground, running for the trees.

  It was only after the reunion in Atlanta that Jack had suddenly collapsed, dizzy with fever.

  The next thing he remembered was waking up in a hospital room, hooked up to half a dozen machines and surrounded by grim-faced Feds waiting to ask questions.

  CHAPTER 3

  Ashley did not expect to sleep at all that night; she had too many things on her mind, between the imminent birth of Olivia’s baby, lingering issues with her mother and siblings, and Jack McCall landing in the middle of her formerly well-ordered days like the meteor that allegedly finished off the dinosaurs.

  Therefore, sunlight glowing pink-orange through her eyelids and the loud jangle of her bedside telephone came as a surprise.

  She groped for the receiver, nearly throwing a disgruntled Mrs. Wiggins to the floor, and rasped out a hoarse, “Hullo?”

  Olivia’s distinctive laugh sounded weary, but it bubbled into Ashley’s ear and then settled, warm as summer honey, into every tuck and fold of her heart. “Did I wake you up?”

  “Yes,” Ashley admitted, her heart beating faster as she raised herself onto one elbow and pushed her bangs back out of her face. “Livie? Did you—is everything all right—what—?”

  “You’re an aunt again,” Olivia said, choking up again. “Twice over.”

  Ashley blinked. Swallowed hard. “Twice over? Livie, you had twins?”

  “Both boys,” Olivia answered, in a proud whisper. “And before you ask, they’re fine, Ash. So am I.” There was a pause, then a giggle. “I’m not too sure about Tanner, though. He’s only been through this once before, and Sophie didn’t bring along a sidekick when she came into the world.”

  Ashley’s eyes burned, and her throat went thick with joy. “Oh, Livie,” she murmured. “This is wonderful! Have you told Melissa and Brad?”

  “I was hoping you’d do that for me,” Olivia answered. “I’ve been working hard since five this morning, and I could use a nap before visiting hours roll around.”

  First instinct: Throw on whatever clothes came to hand, jump in the car and head straight for the hospital, visiting hours be damned. Ashley wanted a look at her twin nephews, wanted to see for herself that Olivia really was okay.

  In the next instant, she remembered Jack.

  She couldn’t leave a sick guest alone, which meant she’d have to rustle up someone to keep an eye on him before she could visit Olivia and the babies.

  “You’re in Flagstaff, right?” she asked, sitting up now.

  “Good heavens, no,” Olivia replied, with another laugh. “We didn’t make it that far—I went into labor at three-thirty this morning. I’m at the clinic over in Indian Rock—thanks to the McKettricks, they’re equipped with incubators and just about everything else a new baby could possibly need.”

  “Indian Rock?” Ashley echoed, still a little groggy. Forty miles from Stone Creek, Meg’s hometown was barely closer than Flagstaff, and lay in the opposite direction.

  “I’ll explain later, Ash,” Olivia said. “Right now, I’m beat. You’ll call Brad and Melissa?”

  “Right away,” Ashley promised. Happiness for her sister and brother-in-law welled up into her throat, a peculiar combination of pain and pleasure. “Just one more thing—have you named the babies?”

  “Not yet. We’ll probably call one John Mitchell, for Big John and Dad, and the other Sam. Even though Tanner and I knew we were having two babies—our secret—we need to give it some thought.”

  Practically every generation of the O’Ballivan family boasted at least one Sam, all t
he way back to the founder of Stone Creek Ranch. For all her delight over the twins’ birth, Ashley felt a little pang. She’d always planned to name her own son Sam.

  Not that she was in any danger of having children.

  “C-Congratulations, Livie. Hug Tanner for me, too.”

  “Consider it done,” Olivia said.

  Goodbyes were said, and Ashley had to try three times before she managed to hang up the receiver.

  After drawing a few deep breaths and wiping away mostly happy tears, Ashley regained her composure, remembered that she’d promised to pass the news along to the rest of her family.

  Brad answered the telephone out at the ranch, sounding wide-awake. The sun couldn’t have been up for long, but by then, he’d probably fed all the dogs, horses and cattle on the place and started breakfast for Meg, Carly, Mac and himself. “That’s great,” he said, once Ashley had assured him that both Olivia and the babies were doing well. “But what are they doing in Indian Rock?”

  “Olivia said she’d explain later,” Ashley answered.

  The next call she placed was to her own twin, Melissa, who lived on the other side of town. A lawyer and an absolute genius with money, Melissa owned the spacious two-family home, renting out one side and thereby making the mortgage payment without touching her salary.

  A man answered, and the voice wasn’t familiar.

  A little alarmed—reruns of City Confidential and Forensic Files were Ashley’s secret addiction—she sat up a little straighter and asked, “Is this 555-2293?”

  “I think so,” he said. “Melissa?”

  Melissa came on the line, sounding breathless. “Olivia?”

  “Your other sister,” Ashley said. “Livie asked me to call you. The babies were born this morning—”

  “Babies?” Melissa interrupted. “Plural?”

  “Twins,” Ashley answered.

  “Nobody said anything about twins!” Being something of a control freak, Melissa didn’t like surprises—even good ones.

  Ashley smiled. “They do run in the family, you know,” she reminded her sister. “And apparently Tanner and Olivia wanted to surprise us. She says all is well, and she’s going to catch some sleep before visiting hours.”