“That’s my girl,” Paul cheered. To Grayson he said, “I knew she was special even when she was a baby, that she would do great things.”
A shadow crossed Gray’s face, and Hadley would bet all the overdue fines she’d collected this year that he was thinking about her arm and her lost scholarship. But he rallied. “You’re right, sir. She is special.”
She beamed at the sincerity in his tone. Maybe the evening wasn’t a complete fiasco. Still, the more childhood stories her proud father shared, the more she winced inwardly. Not because the anecdotes embarrassed her, but because of Grayson’s past. Was it difficult for him to be around doting parents when his own family life had been such a train wreck?
As they finished up their first game, she quickly shut down the idea of a second. “I’m really tired. Grayson, would you mind taking me home?”
“Or we can,” Wanda said. “And your father could take a look at that kitchen light that’s been giving you trouble.”
“Another time,” Hadley said firmly. “Night, guys.” She gave each of her parents a kiss on the cheek. On the way out to the truck, she muttered, “If those two follow us to my place, neither of them are getting Christmas gifts ever again.”
Grayson laughed. “I like them.”
That warmed her heart, given how close-knit her family was. “Thank you. But next date? Just you and me. No family members.”
He gave her a sheepish smile. “Is this a bad time to mention I promised the boys I’d invite you to have dinner with us Saturday?”
* * *
ALL THE HORSES were in their stalls and Grayson was putting away the last of the equipment when Jarrett entered the barn.
Grayson grinned. “Hey, boss. Almost wrapped up here. Come to check my work?”
“Nope, just wanted to say thanks. With Mom and Dad deciding to spend the weekend in Austin after his cardiology appointment yesterday and Sierra and I meeting with the reverend this afternoon, I would have had to cancel at least four lessons if you hadn’t been here.”
“I enjoyed it,” Grayson said. More than he’d expected, actually. “I’ve never taught before. The kids were fun.” Sam and Tyler were giving him a new perspective on children. But despite liking his work, he’d been looking forward to quitting time. He had a date to prepare for.
Coincidentally, so did Violet. When he’d told her about inviting Hadley over, saying he hoped it wouldn’t inconvenience Vi, his aunt said she wouldn’t even be home Saturday night. She’d shyly admitted that she was going to dinner and a movie. With Jim. Grayson couldn’t be happier for them.
“Want to stop by the house for a cold drink before you head out?” Jarrett offered.
“Rain check for another time? I promised a pretty librarian a home-cooked meal tonight.”
“You cook?” Jarrett looked impressed. He’d told Grayson before that he had exactly one culinary skill—grilling steak.
“Vi attempted to teach me, but I was a horrible student. I didn’t bother measuring right or I’d get impatient. So, before I moved out on my own, she taught me one surefire meal—pot roast in a slow cooker. There are fewer than ten ingredients, and it’s impossible to screw up. I just hope it doesn’t raise Hadley’s expectations, because the rest of my repertoire is pretty hit-or-miss.”
Jarrett chuckled. “From the way she looks at you, I don’t think you’re gonna scare her off with rubbery pasta or a burned entrée.”
“Well, I might scare her off if I show up smelling like sweat and horses. I’d better get home so I have plenty of time to shower. See you tomorrow.”
Cupid’s Bow didn’t have some of the amenities of bigger cities, but that meant no city traffic, either. He made it to the farmhouse in good time, and the delicious aroma of roast hit him as soon as he opened the door.
“The boys have been asking every five minutes if it’s time to eat yet,” Violet said as he entered.
“I don’t blame them.” He straightened from taking off his boots and got his first real look at her. “Excuse me, miss, have you seen my aunt anywhere? About yay tall, lives in T-shirts and yoga pants?”
“Ha, ha.” But there was a touch of nervousness in her expression. “When you work at home, there’s no reason to wear dresses every day. Or makeup.”
“Well, you look great.” But it wasn’t the clothes or cosmetics. It was the sparkle in her eyes and happy glow about her that made the real difference. “Have fun tonight. When’s he picking you up?”
She checked the slim gold watch around her wrist. “Fifteen minutes. As long as you hurry, I can watch the boys while you shower.”
“Thanks. And don’t let them near the pot roast!”
By the time Hadley rang the doorbell half an hour later, he was cleaned up, Violet had left and the hungry five-year-olds had been placated with cheese-and-cracker appetizers.
Hadley inhaled appreciatively. “Dinner smells incredible.”
“I cooked it myself,” he boasted. “Well, actually the Crock-Pot cooked it, but I threw in the ingredients and turned on the pot, so I’m taking credit. Now, before I pull the plates down, should I be setting the table for your parents, too, or will it just be us?”
She laugh-groaned. “If they show up, I’m talking to Sheriff Trent about some kind of restraining order.”
From somewhere within the house there was a loud crash.
He clapped a palm to his head. “We’d better see what the twins have knocked over now.”
They found the boys in the back hall, trying to shove flowers into a broken vase.
Sam’s expression was stricken. “We were just tryin’ to get one to give to Hadley.”
Grayson gave his date a sheepish smile. “I’ve been outclassed by five-year-olds. I should’ve thought of flowers. I’m not much of a romantic.”
“You have your moments,” she reassured him. “As for you two...” She kneeled to fold the twins into a hug. “It’s the thought that counts, so thank you for my flowers.”
Watching her cuddle the boys close made Grayson’s lungs feel tight. One of his biggest regrets at that moment was that Blaine and Miranda would never meet Hadley. You guys would love her.
Once the broken vase was cleaned up, they moved on to dinner. The boys were so excited by their guest that Grayson barely got a word in edgewise. But he didn’t mind. It was deeply satisfying to watch three of his favorite people interact. It was also wildly entertaining. He gave up eating halfway through the meal because the twins’ kindergarten tales made him laugh so hard, he was afraid he might choke.
“We finished all our food.” Tyler wrinkled his nose. “Even the salad. Can we play a game now?”
Violet had taken the boys to a toy store downtown and let them pick out a few inexpensive board games.
“One game,” Grayson intoned. “After that, story time and bed.”
Somehow, one game turned into three, with Hadley laughing at Grayson’s frustration that he couldn’t build a bug. Everyone else had a brightly colored plastic bug with pieces they’d assembled by rolling dice on their turns—bodies with legs, heads that had eyes and antennas. Sam only needed to roll the number six for a mouth to win the game. All Grayson had was a collection of feet.
“Maybe you should stick to bowling,” Hadley said. “This doesn’t seem to be your game.”
“Tyler, hand me the rules,” Grayson said. “I think we forgot to read the part where the person with the most feet gets bonus points.”
Hadley shook her head. “Boys, don’t you think there should be a penalty for attempted cheating? When I was growing up, the punishment was...being tickled!”
They all three pounced on Grayson, who fought back. The living room echoed with laughter and shrieking. Grayson couldn’t tell if the breathless antics were tiring the boys out or just winding them up. But, finally, he and Hadley convinced them that they had to get ready
for bed in order to hear a story.
While she read to them, Grayson cleaned up the kitchen, then returned to the dimly lit bedroom, noting how beautiful she was bathed in lamplight. And the boys, snuggled on either side of her, looked cherubic. Last weekend had thrown Grayson some curveballs, finding out about Rachel and about Hadley’s arm, but now he felt...dangerously happy. It wasn’t an emotion he was comfortable with. Too many times in his life, joy had been overturned by tragedy. His self-preservation instincts fought against contentment.
“Okay,” he said gruffly, “that’s enough for tonight. Time to go to sleep.”
Hadley slid out from between the boys, but Sam tugged on her sleeve.
“Can you help tuck us in?” Sam asked.
She kissed his forehead. “It would be an honor.”
“What’s an honor?” Tyler asked around a yawn.
“We’ll save that for the next time I come over,” Hadley said. “I’ll bring a book about an honorable knight who lives in an enchanted castle.”
The four of them shared hugs and night-night prayers, and Grayson tried to squelch the voice inside that asked if it was wise to let the boys get so attached to her. How can I stop them when I can’t even stop myself?
Chapter Twelve
Hadley scanned the book with a grin. “Someone’s planning to do an impressive amount of reading. I approve.”
On the other side of the counter, Sandra Feller shrugged. “Might as well do something with all my sleepless hours.”
“Having trouble with insomnia?” Hadley asked. She’d heard it could be a long-term effect of chemo. Hopefully, now that Sandra was all done with her treatments, the side effects would fade.
“It’s the darnedest thing. I nod off just fine, but I can’t stay asleep. The cats think I’m nuts, prowling the house at odd hours. They’re like ‘hey, that’s our job.’”
Hadley laughed. “Well...” Movement in her peripheral vision distracted her, and she turned to see Grayson striding into the library. He wore jeans and a dark T-shirt, and his hair was damp, as if he’d recently showered.
He met her gaze, and a smile broke across his handsome face. Warmth spread through her as if she had liquid sunshine in her veins. They’d been spending enough time together that one might think she’d stop reacting so strongly whenever she saw him. But just the opposite was true.
She suddenly became aware that Mrs. Feller was watching her with raised eyebrows. “Mrs. Feller, do you know my friend Grayson Cox? We’re on the Watermelon Festival committee together.”
Mrs. Feller turned to study him, her green eyes shrewd. “I don’t believe we’ve met. Officially.”
“Uh, no, ma’am.” He shook her hand, darting a nervous glance toward Hadley. “Grayson Cox.”
“Violet Duncan’s nephew, correct?” At his nod, she added, “And quite a firebrand in your youth, as I recall.”
Hadley was a bit surprised by this description since Grayson had gotten away with his antics. Did many people know he’d been a troublemaker? Then again, aside from some fuzzy moments during her illness, Mrs. Feller was sharp as a tack. Hard to get much past her.
“Yes, I was,” Grayson admitted.
Hadley nodded to the tote bag on Mrs. Feller’s shoulder. “Want me to put your books in the bag for you?”
Mrs. Feller nodded, but before handing over the bag, she shuffled through the stack of books until she found the only nonfiction title she’d checked out. It was about the care of roses. “Do you know, Hadley, some Good Samaritan planted roses in front of my house?”
Hadley kept her gaze on the books. “Well, that’s... Are you happy about them? They’re not causing you too much work, are they?”
Mrs. Feller laughed. “A little work is good for a body. And you know how I love my flowers. I hope whoever did the kind act knows it was appreciated,” she said as Hadley returned the now full bag.
“They’re due back in a week, but you’re welcome to renew them online,” Hadley said.
“See you next week.” Mrs. Feller turned and gave Grayson a small smile. “Nice to meet you, son. Officially.”
As she exited the building, Grayson cleared his throat. “Does everyone else feel like she can see into their soul, or is that just my guilty conscience?”
She would have poked fun at someone else having the overactive imagination for once except that sometimes talking to Mrs. Feller did feel like that. “She is frighteningly observant.”
“You didn’t warn me you were sending me to plant flowers for a psychic.”
“And you didn’t warn me you’d be stopping by.” She hoped he hadn’t been planning to surprise her with lunch, which would be an incredibly thoughtful schedule conflict. “I’m leaving in five minutes.” Bunny was coming in to relieve her, then Hadley was meeting Becca.
“Me, too, actually. I’m headed to the elementary school, today’s mystery reader for Ms. Baker’s kindergarten class. Help me pick out a book?”
She gave him two stories and a few stolen kisses behind the reference books before sending him on his way. As she watched him leave, she sighed happily. A sexy cowboy who made time to read to small children? I am a lucky, lucky woman.
* * *
AT THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, Grayson remembered this time to ring the buzzer and went into the main office to get a visitor’s pass.
The woman behind the desk pursed her lips and stared hard, as if trying to place him. “Oh! You’re Hadley Lanier’s boyfriend, aren’t you?”
“I...” They hadn’t labeled their relationship, and, frankly, he preferred it that way. If he thought too hard about what was happening, panic came rushing in.
A little girl opened the door behind him, saying she needed to see the nurse, and he slipped out without addressing the woman’s question.
He waited outside Ms. Baker’s classroom for the teacher to announce him. All the kids were sitting in a circle on the carpet with their eyes closed; he wondered how she kept that many five-year-olds from peeking. He settled into the rocking chair at the front, and she told the children to open their eyes.
Tyler gaped in surprise, but Sam’s face radiated excitement to see him.
“Everyone say hi to Mr. Cox, who—”
A little girl in pigtails leaned forward to ask Tyler and Sam, “Is that your daddy?”
The twins shared a long look and answered in unison. “Yes.”
Grayson opened the first book, his heart full.
Again, he had that niggling sense that he was in over his head. When was the last time in his life he’d had so many people he cared this deeply about? He thought of the romantic movie he’d watched with Hadley Saturday night and tried to cling to her optimistic belief in happy endings.
Of course, for all her love of the hero winning the day, she also wrote suspenseful stories full of death and darkness. Life was both, the dark and the light, and you rarely got to choose which came for you.
* * *
A COMPETITIVE PERSON, Hadley didn’t know whether she was annoyed she’d lost at Scrabble or turned on that Grayson was such a worthy adversary.
Turned on, she decided. Of course, she’d pretty much felt that way ever since he arrived at her place for dinner. The last two hours of conversation and Scrabble by candlelight had only heightened her desire for him.
Last two hours? Try the last two weeks. Every time she saw him, she fell for him a little more. Part of her wondered if that was wise, but he kept making dates with her. She knew she wasn’t alone in her growing feelings. And, tonight, she didn’t want to be alone in her bed. The privacy at Grayson’s place was limited, but they were at her house tonight. She’d wondered if, given the opportunity, he might try to seduce her. If not, was she brave enough to take the initiative?
Maybe she hadn’t been before Grayson, but the way he looked at her, the way he kissed her, was emb
oldening. Leanne had told her not too long ago that Hadley needed to work on her confidence. Mission accomplished.
She carried the board game to the closet. As she shut the door, Grayson joined her, moving with that rugged grace she so enjoyed watching.
“I think the winner should get a kiss,” he told her.
She grinned. “That works out pretty well for the loser, too.”
He backed her against the wall, his mouth claiming hers. She was glad for the support behind her when he grazed his teeth over the sensitive slope of her neck and her knees went weak.
He raised his head to meet her eyes, but his hand continued to swirl distracting patterns across her collarbone and beneath the straps of her brightly colored sundress. “All of my blood is rushing south,” he told her, “so while I can still think straight, I just want to say...thank you. For dinner tonight and for everything you’ve done for me since I got here.”
“If you’d like to do something for me...” She slid her hand down to the waistband of his pants and crooked a finger through his belt loop. “Stay the night?”
He groaned. “I need to get home before the boys wake up for school, but that still gives us hours.”
“Hours, hmm? We can do a lot in that time.” She led him to her room, where she picked up the remote that controlled a trio of electric candles. She couldn’t wait to get him out of his shirt, to see the flicker of candlelight across the hard muscles of his chest.
He cupped her face, not kissing her yet, just studying her expression.
“In case you’re wondering what I’m thinking,” she said, “it’s how much I want to get you naked.”
He gave a rusty laugh. “Feeling’s mutual.”
Between kisses and intimate touches, they undressed each other with more enthusiasm than finesse, and she couldn’t stifle a moan of appreciation at the sight of his naked form. Then she was moaning because his hands were at her breasts, caressing and teasing. Pleasure sang through the most feminine parts of her. They tumbled onto the bed, rolling across the mattress toward the condoms in her nightstand.
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