“I’m a mom now. I have to be bossy.”
Debbie ignored them as she carried the baby back to the waiting room. She loved babies. She was happy hers were grown and the enormous responsibility of raising children was over, but she was glad to hold this little one, who was sleeping in her arms.
When she reached the waiting room, all five of Kelsi’s siblings crowded around her. “She’s beautiful,” Will whispered, tracing the baby’s cheek with the back of her finger. “What’s her name.”
“This is Willow.” Debbie felt tears prick her eyes. Everyone had waited so long, and listened to so many crazy names, that it felt good to have a real name…and a beautiful baby.
At first no one noticed as Dani stepped into the room. And then Will did a double take. “Whose baby did you steal?”
Dani smiled. “This is Victoria.”
Belinda burst into tears. She was pregnant herself, and Debbie had heard her complain about her hormones being out of control. “Twins. We have twins.”
“The ranch needs twins.” Dani looked down at the sweet baby in her arms, her eyes misting and surprising everyone. “Isn’t she beautiful?”
Everyone looked at the beautiful babies, and the Weston siblings all took turns walking back to see Kelsi. Dani didn’t let go of the baby in her arms, though. She couldn’t seem to put her down.
Debbie was exhausted as Frank drove her back to the ranch. “I haven’t eaten anything since the snack our snow sculpting team had. I’m starving.” She wanted to go fall face first into bed, but she knew that if she went to bed without eating, she would be sick in the morning.
He glanced at the clock in the car. “Everything’s closed at this time of night. I’ll take you to your place, and I’ll cook for you.”
Debbie yawned, shaking her head. “You don’t need to cook for me. I’m sure you’re exhausted too.”
“I got a nap in the waiting room. I don’t mind cooking. I’m getting hungry too. I could take you to my place, but I think you’d rather be close to your own bed.” He loved the idea of cooking for her when she was tired and hungry. A real man took care of his woman.
She yawned behind her hand. “Yeah, I’m pretty tired.”
“So let me cook for you.”
“All right.” It felt strange to let him into her kitchen and wait while he cooked, but it wouldn’t kill her. “I’m going to shower while you cook. I’m still in my snow-Bigfoot building clothes.”
“That’s fine.” He parked in front of her cabin. “You did good today.”
She smiled. “It was tough, and I felt like I was out of place, but I guess now I’m practiced for when Miranda has babies.”
“You don’t want any more?” he asked. He held his breath as he waited for her answer. He didn’t really want kids of his own at this stage of life.
She shook her head. “No, my kids are grown. I have no desire to start over. If you want kids, you should find someone who does.”
“I feel like I’m too old for kids. I just wanted to make sure you weren’t wanting more. I’d probably agree to anything to have you in my life.”
“I am in your life, Frank. You don’t need to change who you are for me.”
He reached out and stroked her cheek. “You’re not getting fed this way. Let’s get inside and I’ll cook.”
She nodded, opening the door and sliding out of the truck. Once the front door was unlocked, she walked straight back to the bedroom and pulled out some clean clothes. She found a pair of shorts and a T-shirt. She’d sleep in them after he left, but they would be fine to wear in front of him too.
She showered and washed her hair, running a brush through it but leaving it wet. If he didn’t like how she looked with her hair not fixed and no make-up on, he had the opportunity to run before it was too late.
When she got into the kitchen, she saw that he’d made bacon and pancakes. She took her seat at the table and let him serve her. After she’d had a few bites, she felt a little more human. “What a day.”
“I know. When did you find out Kelsi was having twins?”
“In the elevator on the way to the maternity ward. I can’t believe she hid it for so long.”
Frank shook his head. “Me neither. But at least there are no Widgets or Willarditas. Do you think her parents know?”
“Nope. She told me they didn’t.”
“That girl is a nut.”
Debbie at the last of her pancakes and leaned back in her chair. “Thanks for cooking for me. I really appreciate it.”
“Happy to do it.” He stood and started clearing the table.
“No, I’ll get the dishes in the morning.”
“I got them now.” He put them into the dishwasher and started it. “I probably didn’t load it the way you would have, but I loaded it. That gets me a few brownie points, right?”
“You have millions of brownie points after today. What are you going to do with them all?”
He walked to the table and caught her hand, pulling her to her feet. “Save them up for a rainy day, I think.” Walking to the door, he turned to her and cupped her face in his hands. “May I kiss you? It’s all I’ve thought about for two weeks, and I think you need to put me out of my misery.”
“Well, that was romantic.”
He shrugged. “At least you know what you’re getting from me.” His thumb rubbed her bottom lip. “How about it? Do I get a kiss?”
She nodded nervously. It had been so long since she’d kissed a man, she wasn’t sure she remembered how!
Frank leaned down and brushed her lips with his, his hand going to the side of her neck, and his thumb stroked the soft skin there. “We’ll try for our first date again tomorrow, if you’re willing.”
“I’d like that a lot.”
“Are you willing to leave right after church?” he asked.
He was still so close that she could feel his breath against her skin. “Yeah, that would be fine. What are we going to do?”
“You’ll see.” He brushed his lips against hers once more. “Tomorrow.”
Debbie stood in the doorway watching him drive away, shivering in the cold night air. There was no doubt in her mind that she was starting to fall in love with a baseball cap-wearing pilot. She just prayed he was kind to her heart.
Frank sat with Debbie, Miranda, and Bob at church the next day, and much to Debbie’s surprise, Miranda had nothing to say about it.
“Are you coming to lunch?” Miranda asked her mom.
“No, not today. Frank and I have plans.” Debbie wasn’t going to hide her relationship from her daughter, as much as she wanted to. For some reason, she felt like she was doing something wrong, dating Frank so openly…but Dale had been dead for twenty years. Surely, he would understand her dating someone else.
“What are you doing?” Bob asked Frank.
“I can’t say. I’m trying to surprise a certain lady who’s listening.” Frank squeezed Debbie’s hand, which he’d held in his for the whole service. “You ready?” he asked her.
She nodded, immediately hugging Miranda. “I’ll see you this week, I’m sure.”
“I’m so glad to see you with Frank, Mom. He’s good for you. You have a twinkle in your eye I’ve never seen before,” Miranda whispered.
“Thanks for understanding.” Debbie waved to Bob, and she and Frank left the little church in the middle of the Old West town. “Now where are we going?”
“Lunch first.”
“How long do you plan on keeping me?”
“Forever.” Frank’s answer was soft, but she heard it.
Debbie blushed. “I meant today. How long will you keep me today?” She had no answer to the forever comment. She was still trying to get used to the idea that she was dating again after being alone for so many years.
“A few hours. I’ll have you home before your curfew.”
She stuck her tongue out at him, realizing that he made her feel young again. She liked it. “Fine. Don’t tell me anything.”
<
br /> “I don’t plan to!” He drove toward town, secretly excited at the day he wanted to share with her. “I’ll tell you that I want to try the new Chinese place for lunch. I was talking to Elf the other day, and he says it’s fabulous.”
“Elf, huh? How did he get that unfortunate name, anyway?”
“His real name is Elvis, which really isn’t a lot better when you think about it.”
“No, it’s not. Poor guy.”
He was very attentive to her throughout lunch, his hand always holding hers. “What are you doing next weekend?”
She grinned. “I seem to have all my spare time eaten up by this man I met a couple of weeks ago…”
“Oh. Snowmobiling it is, then!”
“Would you believe I’ve never been?” Debbie shook her head. “I’ve lived in Idaho for more than twenty years, and I’ve never been on a snowmobile. I should probably be flogged.”
“Nah. Your skin is too beautiful to mar it that way.” Frank knew she was joking, but he couldn’t imagine anyone doing anything to hurt her. It made him angry to think about.
“I don’t know what to say to that.”
He shrugged. “You don’t have to say anything.” He took a sip of water. “Do you feel like we should go see Kelsi today?”
Debbie shrugged. “I don’t think so. I heard that her parents are in town now. I’m sure they’re with her.” She took a sip of her water. “What are they like? Have you met them?”
He nodded. “Yeah. They took off a couple of years ago. They’re good people. Hardworking. They love their kids to distraction.”
“Good. Those kids deserved to be loved to distraction.”
“I’m sure Mrs. Weston is mad that they didn’t make it back in time for the babies’ births, but she’ll find some way to make it up to Kelsi. Why did you let Kelsi help in the contest while she was in labor, anyway?”
“She hid it from me. I had a feeling something was up, but every time I asked, she denied it.”
“I figured it was something like that.”
Debbie grinned. “Aren’t you going to compliment me on my win?”
He shook his head. “Nope. I’m just more determined than ever to beat you next year. I can’t believe you guys made Bigfoot out of snow. That’s such a Kelsi thing to do, but no one else would have agreed.”
“I don’t know why not. It was fun.” She shrugged. “I’d do it again tomorrow if I had a doctor assure me that she wasn’t in labor before we started.”
“That really must have freaked you out. I know you were hoping her mom would get here so you wouldn’t have to be there.”
“Not just for my sake.” Debbie shook her head. “I knew how badly Kelsi wanted her mom to be there for the birth. I wanted everything to be just how Kelsi wanted it.”
“Will you be there when Miranda has a baby?”
Debbie shrugged. “If she wants me there, I will. I never thought I’d be so excited at the prospect of being a grandmother, but I am. I figured I’d be happy waiting until I was fifty or fifty-five. Now, I’m chomping at the bit. She’s married, and I want grandbabies.”
He grinned. “What are you going to do if they decide to wait?”
“Cry a lot.” She laughed softly. “No, I’ll agree with whatever decision the two of them make. It’s not my place to even tell them what I want.”
“Wow. You’re a good mother-in-law, aren’t you?” Frank frowned. “What about your parents? We’ve never really talked about them. They’re in Kansas, I think you said?”
Debbie nodded. “I grew up on a farm there. They still own it, but my older brother runs it.”
“They live there with your brother’s family?”
“Actually, my mom came from an Amish family, and she insisted on a custom that the Amish had. There’s a house for the parents on the same land, so when my brother got married, they moved to the parents’ house.”
Frank tilted his head to one side. “So your mother was Amish? That must have been weird growing up.”
“Not really. She’d left the life years before.” She shrugged. “She sometimes missed her parents, because she wasn’t allowed to visit, but she never said bad things about the life they lived, and she never complained about how it was growing up Amish. She just told us how things were, and we listened.”
“How often do you see your parents?”
“Not very. I try to fly down there every summer for a week, but they’ve never been to Idaho. Dad always said he couldn’t leave the farm for that long, but he’s been retired for ten years. He still won’t come. I think they’re just happy there in Kansas, and don’t have any desire to leave.”
“Does that bother you?” he asked.
“No. They’re the same as they always were. They’re homebodies, and they have no desire for anything else in life. They’re happy that I made it on my own. I was always welcome to come home, too. They’d have welcomed the kids and me with open arms after Dale died, and my mom tried to talk me into coming home, but I refused. I had to know I could stand on my own two feet. I was one of those women who went from her father’s house to her husband’s. I think all women should have at least a little time alone before they marry.”
“Miranda did.”
“I encouraged her to. I didn’t want my daughter following in my footsteps. I’m glad I married Dale when I did, but if I’d had even a year on my own, I’d have dealt with being a single parent so much easier after he died. Of course, then I’d have had one less year with him, so I’m glad it happened the way it did. But in a perfect world…”
“I understand completely.” Frank paid for their meal and stood. “Let’s get out of here.”
“Where to now?”
“Now is the surprise.” He led her to the truck and started driving back toward the ranch.
What kind of surprise could he have for her there? She decided not to worry about it and to just trust him. There was nothing more she could do anyway.
Chapter Eight
Frank pulled onto the ranch, driving into an area that was new to Debbie. He pulled up next to a helicopter and parked the truck. “I’m giving you a tour of this area of Idaho today.”
Debbie grinned. “Sounds like fun. I’ve never been in a helicopter, and honestly, I’ve rarely been on a plane. I tend to drive wherever I need to go.”
“Well, this’ll be a new experience. You’re going to love how much you can see from the chopper. I’ll take it down low to see special areas. We’ll even be able to see my cabin.” He couldn’t wait to show her what he saw on a regular basis. It was special to him, and something he needed to share.
“I’m excited.” She had never really had a desire to be in a helicopter, but she was becoming so attached to the ranch and the people there, she loved the idea of exploring that way. She leaned across the long bench seat in the truck and pressed a kiss to Frank’s cheek. “Thank you for making our first date fun for me.”
His arm slipped around her and he brushed his lips across her forehead. “Thanks for having a first date with me.”
She got out of the truck and followed him to the helicopter, putting on the earphones he handed her. He carefully went through a system check while she looked around the small space they were in. She was buckled in tightly, nervous and excited all at once.
As they flew over the area, she was mesmerized by the beauty of Idaho. If there was a more beautiful place on God’s green earth, she’d like to see it, because she truly didn’t believe there was anything prettier in the whole world.
Two hours later, he set the chopper back down on the helipad, and shut off the engine. He looked at her, seeing that her face was still lit up with excitement. “It’s so beautiful here. I knew it was, but this was all beyond my wildest imagination. I want to go up in the summer once, too, so I can see our world without it’s blanket of snow.”
He grinned, so pleased that she’d been as excited as he was. He took her hand and led her out of the helicopter and over to the truck. �
��That’s all I had planned for today. Lunch and a tour.”
She wound her fingers through his. “It was a wonderful first date. I hope you’re not a man who keeps trying to top himself with each subsequent date, because it’s just not possible after this.”
“No, I think I’m good.”
“So will you take me home now?”
He frowned. “I don’t want to yet.”
“Well, why don’t you come over and we’ll watch something on Netflix, and I’ll fix dinner for us.”
“You wouldn’t mind?”
Debbie shook her head. “I find that the more time I spend with you, the more time I want to spend with you. I’m still feeling a little guilty about forgetting all about Dale, but he’s been gone for twenty years. If he didn’t want me to move on and be happy by now, then he probably wasn’t worthy of my love in the first place.”
Frank nodded, starting the truck. He still felt a tightness in his chest every time she mentioned Dale to him, but she was in her mid-forties. If she hadn’t had a least one serious love by her age, there’d be something wrong with her. “I don’t think you’ll ever forget him. No one would expect you to.”
“Have you talked to Jaclyn?” she asked, wondering about the rumors she’d heard about the woman. She knew Frank had probably avoided Jaclyn before her arrival, but now, she couldn’t help but wonder if he’d taken the time to see her.
Frank nodded, looking sheepish. “Yup. She told me I’d know it was time to kiss you when it was finally here, and that I’d take you up in the helicopter after the babies were born. I thought she meant Kelsi and Belinda’s babies, because I didn’t know Kelsi was carrying twins, of course. I’m still surprised that girl was able to keep such a big secret for so long.”
“She doesn’t seem like a blabbermouth to me. Just a bit flighty. And she has no ability at all to pick a good baby name. Willow is definitely the best we heard from her, so I’m glad she didn’t go with something worse.” She wasn’t certain she could have ever called a child Widget without laughing.
“You and me and the sheriff—heck, the whole ranch is ecstatic there’s not a little Widget lying in that hospital.” He drove out onto the main highway, so he could access the road that led to the cabins on the main part of the ranch. “Have you heard about middle names yet?”
Flyboy's Fancy (River's End Ranch Book 21) Page 8
