A Dusty Dreams Wedding

by Kat Carrington

  "Yes, I'll be fine. I think I need to cook something."

  Brady gave her another quick kiss. "Mm, I love it when you talk like that."

  Jessie sat down on the floor with her back against the couch after Brady went out, gathering Indy into her lap and leaning her face into her fur. The dog snuggled against her, offering comfort to the human she loved, licking her hand, and giving her a little whine. Jessie let her thoughts wander, still a little in shock at everything Devon had told them. She thought about how she had been drawn to Devon from the beginning and wondered if there was an intuition that they were connected somehow. She finally gave herself a mental shake and said, "Indy, I'm getting a little crazy here. I think it's time to concentrate on something else. Like making Brady something delicious for dinner."

  She got up and went to the kitchen to look over the contents of the refrigerator. She finally decided on chicken breasts stuffed with a cheese and mushroom mixture. She dipped them in egg and rolled them in breadcrumbs, then browned them on top of the stove and put them in a baking dish. Jessie cleaned some little red potatoes, red and orange bell peppers and onions and cut them up to sauté in olive oil. Not finished with her cooking spree, she made a salad of fresh tomatoes, basil leaves, and fresh sliced mozzarella drizzled with her homemade Italian dressing. By the time she finished the salad, it was nearly time for Brady to come in and she poured herself a glass of wine and set the table. As usual, cooking made her feel better, and when Brady stepped in the back door, she was able to give him a real smile.

  "Something smells awfully good," Brady said, peeking at the sauté pan on the stove. "Wow, that looks great!"

  Jessie handed him a cold beer and said, "You have time for a shower if you want. Or you can drink your beer, while I finish this, and take a shower afterward."

  Brady took a swig of the ice-cold beer and said, "I'll keep you company and shower after dinner. You look like you're in a much better frame of mind."

  "I was thinking about what you said about forgiving Devon. I don't know how to do it, really, but if it means being aunt to Jacob, I guess I'll have to find a way. But I do need some time to work up to it. I just keep thinking about all the wasted time. And, I can't stop thinking how Jake would have loved Jacob."

  Brady planted a kiss on the back of her head while she turned potatoes. "That's one part that wasn't Devon's fault. Jake never had a chance to know Jacob, and even if she had devoted herself to finding out more about Jake, it wouldn't have changed that."

  "No, it wouldn't have." There was deep, deep sadness in Jessie's voice. "Oh, Brady, some days I still miss him so much."

  Brady's arms were around her. "I know, baby. I miss him too. It never goes away completely."

  "Well. If Jacob is Jake's son, we have a chance to make sure he grows up happy and healthy and surrounded with people who love him."

  Brady smiled. "My family will love him. Mom doesn't have any grandkids yet and she's chafing at the bit. He wouldn't technically be her grandson but close enough for her, I'm sure."

  "And I bet Jacob would love to have a big family."

  Brady took the hot baking dish out of the oven for her and set it on the trivet on the table. Jessie put the potato sauté in a serving dish and handed it to him and then got the tomato salad and added it to the table. She sliced some French bread, and they sat down to dinner.

  "Baby, this is the most colorful supper I've ever seen," Brady said with a grin.

  "Good. I ran out of time for dessert, so eat up."

  After dinner was finished and cleaned up and Brady finally got his shower, the two of them sat on the porch swing, just enjoying the warm evening. They didn't talk much, just relaxed with their thoughts and watched the sunset. The day had been emotionally exhausting, and the two of them were ready for bed early, falling asleep snuggled together, both of them dreaming about Jake.

  Brady took Devon to the appointment at the Army recruiter's office two days later. She brought the documents that the officer had asked for and there was lots of paperwork to fill out. When they left, they had an appointment to have Jacob's DNA sample collected and the officer's promise to try to expedite the whole thing. It was still going to take several weeks, but at least things were in motion. Brady drove Devon home, and she quickly got out of his truck. Brady got out too and motioned to her. "I'd like to talk to you for a minute." He followed her to the porch and leaned a hip on the railing.

  Devon looked weary. "What would you like to talk about?"

  Brady gave her a long look. "Jessie is pretty hurt right now. But if Jacob is Jake's son, she needs to be close to him. Are you prepared for that?"

  Devon gave him a guarded look. "He's my son. I have to do what's best for him. And I have to think over everything carefully."

  "Do you really think any harm could ever come to that little boy from Jessie? Or, for that matter, from me or the rest of my family?"

  "I didn't say that. But this is all going to be awfully confusing for him. After all, he's not quite five. If people he's never met before start presenting themselves as family, how's he going to handle that? It's always been just him and me. I'm not going to screw him up by dumping all this on him."

  "Really. Who's it really going to screw up, him or you? Maybe it's really that you don't want to share him with other people who would love him."

  Devon flushed and said hotly, "That's not fair. I always have Jacob's best interests in mind, first and always. And nobody is going to put things into his head before I know he's going to be all right. And he's not going to hear a word of any of this until I get the answers."

  Brady gave her a look of disgust. "Nobody's going to put things in his head. Nobody's going to say a word until the answers are back. You really think either of us would tell him something before we even know if it's true?"

  "Then you'll give your word that you won't tell your family until we know the truth? In fact, until I say it's okay to tell them."

  Brady studied her for a long minute. "What is it you're afraid of, Devon? What would be bad about a little boy having more people in his life who love him?"

  "I don't know any of those people. I only know you and Jessie. And you've both been good to Jacob. But I didn't let him just jump into a relationship with the two of you. I got to know you first, and then I watched you with him. And I'm going to have to get to know them first too. You don't just get to bring them into my son's life. I'm responsible for him, for protecting him. And it's going to stay that way." She was breathing hard.

  "You aren't going to lose anything by adding family, Devon. We're not Grant. We're not a threat to you or to Jacob. Let your guard down a little."

  "I did that with you two! And look what happened. Of all the people in the world I could have gotten to know, it turns out to be the sister of the guy I had a fling with. How fucked up is that? What are the chances of that happening?"

  Brady said calmly, "And it scares the shit out of you, doesn't it?"

  "Yes! Wouldn't it you? If you were in my shoes?" Devon was near tears.

  "Devon. Deep down, you know your son is safe to be in a relationship with us, don't you? What are you really scared of when it comes to us? I know why Grant scares you, but why us?"

  "Because I liked you! Both of you. I felt like Jessie was my friend. And at the same time, I knew that by waiting to tell you, I was probably screwing it up beyond any saving. How is Jessie going to forgive me for that? And if it hurts me to lose her friendship, how bad could it hurt if I let Jacob love you all and then he lost you? I just fucked everything up so bad, and I can't fix it!"

  "Now listen to me. I know Jessie better than anyone in the world. I know her heart. It's big and it's loving, and she will forgive you. But she's hurt, she's hurt a lot, and it's going to take some time. Just make sure that you're honest from here on out and give her time."

  Devon wiped her eyes. "And what about you?"

  Brady gave a little bit of a grin. "Shit, Devon, I've seen a lot of ugly stuff. This doesn
't even come close to ugly. What you have here is the chance to bring a lot of good things to your son."

  Devon gave him a bleak look. "And what if it's Grant?"

  Brady looked grim. "Then we have to figure out how to make him go away and stay away. Doesn't change anything for me and Jessie."

  "Really? You could both go back to just being friends and seeing Jacob occasionally? You could forget about the fact that I gave Jessie this hope that Jacob could be her dead brother's son and then her hopes were dashed?"

  Brady thought that over and admitted, "That would be hard for her. She's trying to keep from getting her hopes up, but you're right. She's hoping with everything she's got that Jake was his father. And no matter how many times I tell her to remember that we just don't know yet, I know she believes that he was. Yeah. There's no doubt that she's going to be crushed if it turns out that he wasn't. I'll just have to do all I can to help her through it. And you could help her too. You could still let her be your friend once her heart heals and let her be in Jacob's life. She was before this, wasn't she?"

  Devon said, "Yes, I guess she was. Jacob loves her, and you too."

  "So, we wait, and even though we tell ourselves not to, we hope for what we want to be the outcome. And whatever it is, we pick up the pieces and find a way to support each other. Okay?"

  Devon looked hard at him, and she could see from his eyes that he was speaking the truth. "Okay. You and Jessie are really something else, you know it?"

  "I'll let you in on a secret. Jake was a helluva lot like Jessie. He would have made a great dad. Now I've got to get home to my woman and fill her in. Don't you forget, if you hear anything from Grant, you call us right away."

  "I promise," Devon said, watching him walk to his truck. Suddenly, she decided to go pick up her son early. She had a strong need to see him and hug him close.

  Chapter 19

  It wasn't long before Grant made a move. Devon received a letter from an attorney on Grant's behalf. The letter stated that since Devon had lived with Grant in a "marriage type" relationship for more than a year before they split up and Jacob had been born nine months after that, that paternity could be assumed and agreed upon. The letter was demanding that Devon sign that agreement. If she refused, then Grant's attorney would take further action. The letter was clearly stated in a way to make her think that she had to go along with what Grant was demanding. Reading it, Devon gave a snort of derision. Grant really thought that she was still the old Devon, that he could influence her into anything he wanted. She remembered her promise to call Brady and Jessie and sighed. She was perfectly capable of handling this, but a promise was a promise.

  Brady and Jessie were at her door within an hour. Jessie's greeting was cool but cordial and Devon knew it was the best she could hope for at this point. They sat on the sofa and read the letter together. Jessie looked anxiously at Brady and asked, "Is this true? Can they really make her agree to this?"

  "No, not at all. I'd say it's just an attempt to bully her into giving him legal paternity with a minimum of effort and expense on his part." Brady dismissed the letter and handed it back to Devon.

  Devon said, "I was young when I was with Grant and dazzled by him. He could get me to do pretty much anything he wanted me to, just by persuasion and pressure. He hasn't really realized that I'm not that gullible little girl anymore."

  "He's also going to use this letter to set the stage if he goes to a judge to request a paternity order."

  Jessie looked horrified. "He can do that? Force Devon to have Jacob tested?"

  "He can file a motion for it. And Devon can file an objection to it. It all takes time and I'd say that the Army test will be back before they could get through the whole process. And even if it's not, the judge won't necessarily grant his request."

  Devon said, "I have good arguments against it, particularly since there's a test in progress already. After all, I'd been with Grant and not on birth control for several months and was never able to get pregnant. Two nights with Jake, and a few weeks later, I found out I was pregnant."

  "But you said Grant was tested, and the doctor said he could have children," Jessie pointed out.

  Devon said thoughtfully, "Yes, that's what he told me. But I don't know that he ever actually did that. He could have just been saying it to make me feel worse. That would have been just like Grant."

  "Well, you could just ignore it and wait for his next move. Or you could go see a lawyer and get a legal opinion. That's going to cost you money, of course," Brady said.

  "I don't have a problem with spending the money," Devon said. "But I want to make sure it's a lawyer I can trust, not just one who wants to bill me. Do you know someone?"

  "As a matter of fact, we do," Brady answered. "Jessie had legal work that had to be done when Jake died, and we've had a lot of things that had to be filed and drawn up regarding the ranch. Mack Thorne is an attorney right in Jasper. He's in his sixties and a real student of the law still, and he's as honest as you could hope to find."

  Devon looked at Jessie. "Do you like him, Jessie?"

  Jessie nodded. "I do. I'd trust him with any legal questions I ever had."

  "That's good enough for me," Devon said quietly. "I'll call and make an appointment."

  "You can tell him I gave you his name," Jessie said.

  Devon felt a wave of relief, and she said simply, "Thank you, I will."

  Brady asked, "Is this all you've gotten from Grant? No other attempts at anything?"

  Devon shook her head. "No, this is it. I knew I could handle it myself, but I promised to call you. I'm sorry you had to come over here for something this simple."

  "Don't be. This is not just because we think you might need help with him, or I think you need some kind of protection from him. It's because we've got your back. That simple." Brady rose from the couch and Jessie did the same.

  Devon had to blink rapidly at the rush of emotion his words caused. "I don't think anybody's had my back since Dad died. Thank you. That means a lot to me."

  Jessie studied her for a moment. Her eyes were still cool, but she nodded at Devon. "That goes for me too. We've got your back."

  After they left, Devon leaned her forehead against the door for a few seconds. For the first time since her confession to Jessie, she felt some hope that Jessie might actually be able to give her another chance. She took a deep breath and smiled a little. Maybe there could be light at the end of the tunnel. She called and made the appointment with the attorney's office, and when the receptionist heard Jessie's name, she fit Devon into the appointment book that very week. Devon entered the appointment into her calendar with a wry smile. It was an unfamiliar feeling to have people supporting her. Other than her dad, she'd never really had that. She'd always been kind of a loner, and after losing her dad, she'd gotten used to it. But she was finding that it felt really good to have Brady and Jessie supporting her. Her spirit felt lighter than it had in days, and she smiled as she sat down to work at her computer.

  Brady patted Jessie on the knee as he drove back to the ranch. "I'm proud of you, baby. I know you're still hurting, and that was good, letting Devon know you're supporting her too."

  Jessie said simply, "It was for Jacob." Brady pulled her closer to him and she rested her head on his shoulder. "I've decided that I have to stop thinking about what Devon did and just think about Jacob if I'm going to get through this waiting. And you and our wedding."

  Brady kissed the top of her head and said, "You're even smarter than you look, Jessie Mills. No wonder I'm marrying you."

  Jessie swatted him and said, "Hey! I don't look smart?"

  "That's not what I said. I said you're even smarter than you look. That means you must be, like, really super smart."

  Jessie shook her head and said, "Nice save, Jensen."

  Brady chuckled and kissed her again. "I know whose good side to stay on. If I don't, I might waste away to skin and bones."

  "Oh, really. You know, the day I met you,
you weren't exactly skin and bones. In fact, you were kind of yummy looking."

  "You saw that, huh?"

  "I sure did." Jessie said.

  "Well, I was living on Mom's cooking then. I knew to stay on her good side too."

  Jessie laughed at him. "Well, you're in luck. I'm going to do a little baking today. And later this afternoon, I'm going over to Kayla's for a while. I need to have a good long talk with her."

  Brady cautioned, "Don't say anything to her about what's happening with Devon."

  Surprised, Jessie asked, "Why? Kayla's no gossip. She's perfectly capable of keeping a secret."

  "I promised Devon that we wouldn't say anything to anybody until after we get the results."

  "You promised for me?" There was a spark in Jessie's eyes.

  "Yeah, I guess I did. We were talking mainly about my family, but I did promise."

  "You shouldn't have done that, Brady. I can think for myself, you know." Jessie was a little pissed.

  "Well, I won't do it again, and I'm sorry I did it without talking to you, but I still promised. And, like Devon said to us, a promise is a promise. So, please, don't tell Kayla or anyone else until we know what the test says."

  Jessie kept silent, and just then, Brady turned into the driveway. By the time he got out of the truck, Jessie had unlocked the door and Indy was bounding out to meet them. Within minutes, they were both busy and Brady was answering his phone to find Red asking him to head out with some fencing repair supplies. Jessie waved as he took off and went into the kitchen to start her own day. She fumed for a while about the promise Brady had made. "He can't promise for me. There's no reason I shouldn't be able to talk to Kayla. I need to talk to her. She's got a son. She's got a perspective that I don't have. It's not fair for Brady to keep me from talking to her. She's not going to tell anyone if I ask her not to. Brady and Devon will never know. I need to take some cookies to Caleb anyway; at least I can spend some time with them even if I don't talk about Devon and Jacob." Satisfied with her decision, Jessie tied her apron on and got to work.