Her Christmas Family Wish

by Lois Richer

  “I can’t decorate, and I didn’t make them. Taryn kept the snowflakes from some hospital fund-raising gig she did once. They were sitting in boxes in the garage so… Tanner helped me put them up.”

  “They’re beautiful. Oh, look!” Ellie grabbed his hand, her face every bit as excited as Gracie’s when she spied the blow-up snowman. “It’s so cute.” She stopped short when a group of kids began to sing “Happy Birthday” to Gracie.

  Wyatt stood beside Ellie, enjoying the myriad expressions that flickered across her face. “I hope it’s okay that I invited her whole class. I didn’t want to leave out anyone. Her teacher helped.”

  “You invited twenty-two kids to Wranglers Ranch and Tanner let you?” she said.

  “Actually he suggested it. He also hired the bus to bring them here. Apparently the parents will pick them up at eight o’clock.” Wyatt smothered a surge of pleasure at Ellie’s surprise and obvious enjoyment as she mingled among the kids.

  “It’s amazing,” she breathed when she returned from circulating. “A bouncy castle. A clown and those little ponies—where did they come from?”

  “I mentioned to Tanner that one of my clients is selling his place. His buyer doesn’t want the miniatures, so now they have a new home on Wranglers Ranch.” Wyatt smiled as Gracie climbed on one with Lefty’s help. “Tanner thinks they’ll be perfect for the smaller kids to ride. I checked them over. They’re all healthy.”

  Ellie watched as the kids went squealing from one activity to the next. When she finally turned to face him, there was a look on her face that Wyatt couldn’t decipher.

  “Tanner was right,” she murmured.

  “About?” he prodded.

  “You working for Wranglers Ranch. Look how this place has blossomed since you started. Tanner told me you caught two infections another vet missed.” She studied him, her face serious. “Your suggestions are amazing. You should come on board full-time.”

  “Tanner’s asked me, but I have my practice to run.” Cade dragged at his hand, wanting to go to the horses. So, with one of Wranglers’ hands holding the reins, Wyatt lifted his son on to the smallest horse and walked beside it. “Look at him,” he crowed with pride. “A true cowboy through and through.”

  “I suppose you’ll be entering Cade in the rodeo in February,” Ellie teased a few minutes later. “Seriously though Wyatt, why don’t you think about working here?”

  “I’m committed to building my own business.” She didn’t have to know he’d lost another client this week.

  “A laudable goal for sure,” she said quietly.

  “But?” Since Cade was drooping Wyatt lifted him off the horse and carried him to the drinks table. “You don’t think I can do it?”

  “Of course you can do it,” Ellie said firmly. “It’s more a question of do you want to? Full-time work here would give you more regular hours. You could spend evenings and weekends with this guy, mostly uninterrupted.” She tickled Cade and laughed when he giggled. “He won’t nap in the afternoon forever.”

  “I know but—” Wyatt wanted her to understand, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to explain why he needed to build his business. “I must have my own business, Ellie.”

  “Okay. So why can’t part of your business be as the on-call vet for Wranglers? I know Tanner has asked you several times.” Her eyes held his, waiting for his response. “Don’t you like working here?”

  “I love it.” He was embarrassed by how fast that response slipped out. “It’s a fantastic place to work. Tanner knows his stuff, and he treats his animals well. He takes my suggestions seriously, and I’m very proud to be associated with his work with the kids that come here.” He grinned. “Plus, he’s a great spiritual mentor, and I need that.”

  “So what’s the problem?”

  “I guess I could agree to be his on-call vet.” He shrugged. “That’s basically what I’m doing now anyway, and so far it’s working well. I don’t mind the extra income either.”

  “That’s good to hear. I’m sure he’ll be pleased.” It looked like she was, too. “We’ll enjoy whatever time you can spend here. You’ll be a great asset to Wranglers.”

  Wyatt was about to thank her when he noticed her attention had turned to Gracie. As Ellie moved closer he followed, noting her frown as they both overheard Gracie tell another child how she’d prayed for a special birthday party.

  “And God answered.” She glanced around with a happy grin. “Isn’t it great? He’ll answer my other prayers, too,” she added, her attention now focused on Wyatt. “I know it.”

  Seeing that Ellie was about to have words with her daughter, Wyatt stepped in. “Gracie, are you ready for your cake?” He hoped the fairy-tale cake Sophie was setting on the table would divert her attention.

  Wyatt moved behind Ellie, breathing in her fragrance as a light breeze tossed stands of her hair across his face. Standing there contentedly as he watched Gracie blow out the candles, he couldn’t help but marvel at the little girl’s faith. She had implicit trust in God to answer her prayers. Ellie seemed the same. Both of them expected God to be there for them.

  Wyatt wanted to share that trust. Longed to.

  But how can God give you your dreams when you still blame that boy for Taryn’s death? When you can’t trust Him with that?

  They were sobering questions. Ones he didn’t have the answers to. Yet.

  Chapter Seven

  “Mommy?”

  “Yes, honey?” Relieved that Gracie’s star was finally perched atop their Christmas tree, Ellie carefully lifted her daughter down.

  Getting the star in place on Monday morning before work and school wasn’t exactly the way she’d planned to finish the weekend job of decorating their tree but at least it was one less thing on her list. With only two and a half weeks left before Christmas, that list seemed endless.

  “Can we go to… Cade’s house after school today?”

  Ellie gathered her daughter’s backpack and ushered her out to the car. “Wyatt told me at your party that he has a sitter for Cade in the afternoons now. We don’t need to go there anymore.”

  Ellie knew she should be grateful for that freedom because every second of her day was filled with things to do. Only she missed those visits. A lot. And not just because of Cade.

  “But I need to go to Cade’s house to see him and his daddy,” she insisted.

  “Why?” Might as well get it out in the open, Ellie decided in resignation.

  “To find out what to get them for Christmas.” Gracie said it as if Ellie should have known. “We haven’t got them a gift yet.”

  “I wasn’t thinking we would.” Ellie didn’t have the resources to buy that many gifts. “Anyway, Cade couldn’t tell you, and I’m sure Wyatt won’t either.”

  “I’m not going to ask them.” Gracie looked at her askance. “I’m just going to see what they need.”

  “Oh.” Ellie coughed to cover her mirth.

  “’Sides, Da—” Gracie peeked at her, then quickly adjusted to say, “—he’s going to let me help him with a hurt owl.”

  “Wyatt. His name is Wyatt. Or Mr. Wright.” Exasperated, Ellie pulled into the school lot. “When did he say that?”

  “At church. Yesterday.” Gracie grinned. “I liked helping him with the animals.”

  As if she’d done it more than twice.

  “We can’t go today,” Ellie insisted. “I have too much to do before Christmas.”

  “When then?” Gracie stared at her, waiting for an answer Ellie didn’t have.

  “I don’t know. We’ll see. Now off you go so you aren’t late.” She pulled into the drop-off zone, leaned back and kissed her cheek. “Bye, sweetie.”

  “Can I go tomorrow?” Gracie asked as she exited the car.

  “We’ll talk about it later.” When the answer would still be no.

  Gracie’s over-the-top-birthday party on Friday night, a camp at Wranglers Ranch on Saturday, which he’d helped with, and yesterday when he’d sat beside her i
n church—Ellie had been seeing entirely too much of Wyatt Wright lately.

  Not that she wasn’t grateful to him. She was. That party had been an incredibly kind and generous gesture to a little girl.

  But lately it seemed Wyatt was at Wranglers Ranch every day, which meant she talked to him every day and admired him working with the animals every day. She’d lectured herself a hundred times about it and still couldn’t shake this silly schoolgirl crush on him. It seemed like her no-romance rule was in danger of being breached, and that wasn’t going to happen. She wouldn’t, couldn’t let it.

  By the time she arrived at the ranch she was ten minutes late, and Tanner was waiting in her tiny log house/office.

  “I’m sorry I’m late,” she apologized.

  Ignoring her apology, he blurted, “Sophie’s sick.” The miserable look on his face said it all. “Nothing I do helps.”

  “Morning sickness,” she guessed. “I’ll go make her some peppermint tea.”

  “Thank you, Ellie.” Tanner’s sunny smile reappeared. “I knew you’d know what to do. And if Wyatt comes looking for me, tell him I’m in the north quarter trying to figure out how that coyote got in.”

  “Any damage?” There must have been if Wyatt had been called.

  “It bit one of the pregnant mares, which means a tetanus shot and probably some antibiotics.” He made a face. “Lefty’s tracking the coyote in case it’s sick.”

  “Okay, I’ll tell Wyatt.” Ellie walked to the main house trying not to skip as she went. What in the world was wrong with her that thoughts of Wyatt made her act like Gracie?

  After reading herself the riot act, she took Sophie the tea she’d brewed, her heart saddened by the mom-to-be’s stricken look as she lay in bed, her face whiter than her sheets.

  “Drink this,” Ellie said handing her the cup. “And munch on those crackers.”

  “I’m a nuisance,” Sophie groaned. “And I’m so tired.”

  “It will pass. Drink the tea.” Ellie waited until she’d taken a sip. “You don’t have any catering jobs today, do you?”

  “Nothing till the weekend. Thank You, Lord.” Sophie lay back on the pillows. “I’d forgotten all about morning sickness.”

  “And you will again when this baby’s born,” Ellie promised. “Rest now.”

  In the kitchen she cleaned up the counters, turned on the dishwasher and started a slow-cooker meal for Sophie and Tanner’s lunch. She was about to leave when she saw Wyatt drive up.

  Settle down, she told her dancing stomach. It’s only Wyatt.

  Only Wyatt. Right. Mocking herself, Ellie stepped outside and closed the door behind her. She set a little Do Not Disturb sign on the step.

  “Good morning.” He glanced from the sign to her, a question in his eyes.

  “Morning sickness. She’ll sleep for a while.” Ellie couldn’t help studying Wyatt with an approving glance. He looked fresh and ready to take on the day, his usually bristled jaw clean, revealing his sharp chin and full lips. He must iron his shirts to get them so crisp. And where in Tucson did they sell jeans that fit like that?

  “Ellie?”

  “Sorry.” She tried to hide her blush. “Uh, Tanner said you could find him in the north quarter.”

  “Hunting for the coyote, I expect.” He frowned when she kept standing there. “Is anything wrong?”

  “No.” She scanned her fuzzy brain for something to explain her fog. “Just that, well, I was wondering…” This was going to sound so awkward, especially since yesterday she’d refused his lunch offer because she’d been trying to distance herself. “Is there a good time when I could bring Gracie over to your place?”

  Surprise widened his eyes.

  “She wants to help you with an owl.” Relieved when understanding dawned, she added, “And find out what to get you and Cade for Christmas.”

  “Oh, that’s not necessary.”

  “I’m afraid it is to her,” Ellie told him. “Can we walk and talk?” He nodded, so she led the way to her office. “Gracie has this thing about Christmas gifts.”

  “Thing?” Wyatt arched an eyebrow.

  “She’s been making a list of gifts she wants to give,” she explained. “In fact now she wants to give one to each of the friends she’s made here at the ranch.”

  “But surely you can’t afford that.” Wyatt blinked. “What I mean is—”

  “I know what you mean, and you’re right that I can’t buy that many gifts.” She smiled. “Fortunately we’re making decorated gingerbread people. A little bag of cookies for each friend.”

  “That’s a lot of work.” He stopped outside the door.

  “Especially since my place is so small. The kitchen is dinky and the oven even smaller. I was going to ask Sophie to use the kitchen here until I found out how much Christmas catering she has booked. I don’t want to add to her stress.”

  “You tell Gracie those cookies would make a great gift for Cade and me, too.” Wyatt grinned.

  “Uh, I don’t think cookies will cut it with Gracie, though you could try suggesting it.”

  “But I don’t want her to spend her money on us.”

  “Wyatt, you should know by now that there’s no point in telling me to stop Gracie,” Ellie said with asperity. “It’s like telling a horse not to eat grass.”

  Wyatt’s laughter reached to the top of the Palo Verde tree outside her door. “Don’t I know it.” He sobered. “What does Gracie want for Christmas?”

  “I think you already know that answer,” she said, keeping her face expressionless.

  “She’s still harping on about a daddy for Christmas?” Her nod made Wyatt groan. “I was hoping we’d moved past that by now.”

  “You wish.” Ellie needed to prepare for a new class of troubled kids who’d been court-mandated to spend time at Wranglers. Tanner’s successful equine assisted rehabilitation program was getting high marks from those who worked with kids at risk. Still, she stood there studying the handsome veterinarian.

  “You have quite a daughter.” Wyatt’s gaze held hers for so long Ellie wondered if she was the only one that felt the air simmering between them. Eventually he said, “I better stop gabbing and go find Tanner. See you, Ellie.” He waved, then walked away.

  Ellie forced herself to enter her office knowing he’d saddle up and ride cross-country to find Tanner, which was quicker and easier than driving the rugged foothills. It took every bit of self-control she had, but she refused to go to the window and watch him ride off.

  She couldn’t help it if her brain noted the sound of his horse trotting away, or that she couldn’t focus until she heard the same trot signalling his return. She was going to have to do something about this ridiculous fixation on Wyatt Wright.

  Before it got out of control.

  *

  Wyatt ended his call and shoved his phone into his pocket while trying to stifle the guilt that always rose whenever he left Cade with a sitter. But Tanner had offered him an afternoon’s work, and he couldn’t turn it down. Besides, according to the sitter, Cade was having a ball in the sandbox.

  “Kids who’ve had encounters with the justice system are sometimes desperate to vent, and they take it out on the animals. I’d appreciate it if you could stay today, Wyatt, just in case something crops up,” Tanner had said earlier, so Wyatt had agreed to stay until the class was finished.

  Now he stood beside Ellie outside the tack room, watching as a bunch of trying-to-be-tough teens fumbled and bumbled with the equipment they’d been given to groom their horses.

  “Who exactly are these kids?” he asked sotto voce.

  “Kids who’ve had some kind of brush with the law. Not hardened criminals, which is why they’re here,” she explained. “Tanner’s program has had a lot of success breaking down the barriers that troubled kids usually have.”

  Wyatt immediately thought of the kid he knew only as Ted, the boy he blamed for Taryn’s death, and felt a surge of anger. He sure hoped no judge sent that kid here to pl
ay with horses as punishment.

  “Have you given any more thought to Tanner’s offer of full-time employment?” Ellie asked.

  “You mean because I’m around Wranglers so much?” He chuckled at her sheepish face. “It’s very attractive but—”

  “You still feel you have to build your own business.” She frowned. “You are here a lot.”

  Brutal, but it was the truth. “I can’t accept Tanner’s offer.”

  “Why? Can you tell me?” Ellie’s kind eyes studied him. It was the compassion Wyatt saw there that drew his response.

  “I made a promise to my dad before he died that I would make mine the best veterinarian business in Tucson, worthy of the Wright name.” He saw her lips purse. “What?”

  “It’s none of my business, of course, but I don’t think it’s fair for parents to put those kinds of restrictions on their kids. What parent can know the future choices their kid will have to make?” Ellie sounded annoyed.

  “What did your parents do?” he asked curiously.

  “They told us that it didn’t matter to them what career we chose. They said they’d be proud of us as long as we were the best that we could be.” Ellie nodded. “I think that’s what every parent should want for their child.”

  Wyatt thought about that for a moment, about how sensible it sounded. “You had a good childhood, didn’t you, Ellie?”

  “The best.” Her face transformed into pure happiness. “We never had much money. Dad farmed. Mom helped him and took in sewing for people. But they always had time for us, and we had so much fun together.” Her face sobered. “My parents gave my sister and me things money can’t buy, like boundless love, joy and encouragement. They’re both gone now, but we never doubted we were loved. That’s what I want for Gracie.” She sighed. “And that’s what I can’t seem to instill in her.”

  “Why do you say that?” Wyatt hated that sound of defeat. “Gracie knows you love her.”

  “But it’s not enough. She’s still trying to find security by finding a daddy,” Ellie said, her pain obvious. “I’m doing something wrong.”

  Wyatt didn’t have time to dispute that because Tanner waved him over to help with one of the kids, a barely-teenage boy named Albert. Seeing the kid’s embarrassment and shyness, Wyatt joked as he demonstrated how to untangle the reins so the horse could move its head more freely. As he did he tried to ease Albert’s obvious nervousness. But all the while Wyatt couldn’t forget Ellie’s face when she’d spoken of her parents, because that was exactly how he wanted Cade to feel about him.