Callie stopped halfway to the tree and looked over her shoulder. “And?”
“She got ahold of her contact, and it’s like this. Nobody in this part of the state is willin’ to take on three kids right here at the holidays. Some folks out in west Texas said they had room for one. Someone down near Corpus Christi says they’ll take one, and another family in the middle of Fort Worth will take the third one, so they’re not staying in Burnt Boot, and they aren’t staying together,” Verdie whispered.
“When?” Callie asked.
“The Laytons are plannin’ to leave on Sunday morning, so the kids will be taken somewhere that day and then split up on Monday morning, I guess. Martin probably won’t even see them again.”
Callie hung the two ornaments and sat down in the recliner, put her hands over her eyes, and let the tears flow.
Verdie patted her on the shoulder. “Polly says she could probably put in a word if someone wanted them through the holidays around here, so they could finish out the semester at school and not be yanked up right here at the finish, but who’s going to take on three orphans a couple of weeks before Christmas?”
Callie pinched her nose with her two fingers, but it didn’t stop the headache. “You think they’d let me have them?”
“Don’t know. You sure couldn’t do it without talking to Finn first. Now let’s get these decorations up. You and I will do some shopping on Monday and even have presents under the tree when Martin gets off the school bus. That might help a little bit,” Verdie said.
“Come outside and see the front of the house,” Martin yelled from the door. “Oh, oh, what is that? Is it a cookie jar shaped like Santa Claus?”
Verdie held it up. “Yes, it is, and it’s guaranteed to stay on the cabinet and have magic cookies in it every day for your after-school snack.”
Martin let out a whoop. “What’s magic cookies?”
“It’s not the cookies that are magic. It’s the jar. It never runs out of cookies,” Verdie answered.
“Hey, you hear that, Finn? We got magic in this place until after Christmas.”
“Shut the door before you let all the warmth out, and we’ll be out there in a few minutes. Got to get our jackets. Don’t get chilled. We can always finish decorating tomorrow if we don’t get it done today,” Verdie said.
“I can’t wait to see it all lit up.” Martin’s last two words were muffled through the door.
“See there, the decoratin’ business is takin’ his mind off it.” Verdie set the cookie jar on the coffee table and pulled out a small nativity scene. “We used to put this on the mantel. I see that Finn hasn’t put anything on it yet. What do you think? Mantel or foyer table?”
“Mantel,” Callie said. “I’ll put the cookie jar in the kitchen, and then we’ll work on the mantel together.”
Verdie handed the jar up to her. “I’ll sit here and unpack. My old bones are like Pistol’s. We like to settle in and get comfortable. You’re like Angel, climbing trees to get a better look at the world. And them boys out there are like Shotgun, full of piss and vinegar. You can arrange the mantel while you tell me a story about that boot in the tree. I haven’t ever seen a real leather boot ornament before. Aha, that brought a smile to your face. It must be a good one.”
“It is, but first we’ve got to go brag on the outside lights.”
“My coat is hanging on the back of the rocking chair in my room. Would you get it for me, please?” Verdie asked.
***
A pang of guilt hit Finn right in the gut when he realized snow was over the top of Martin’s shoes. He should have fought harder to get the kid a pair of boots.
The guilt trip was cut short when he saw Callie’s face. She looked as if she’d been crying, and only one thing could have caused that. Polly had called with bad news. He quickly went to her side and took her hands in his.
“I’m sorry.”
“He’s going to be devastated. Don’t tell him now. It’ll spoil his fun,” she whispered.
“Dammit, Callie! I want to hold you and kiss you and make it all go away,” he said.
“Me too. Maybe later.”
Verdie pushed outside in an old coat not so very different from his grandmother’s work coat. Callie was right; they couldn’t let her go back to that impersonal place for the holidays. They had to invite her to stay on at the ranch and enjoy Christmas in Burnt Boot.
“Goin’ up good and tight,” Verdie said.
Martin clapped his hands in excitement. “It’s going to be beautiful. Santa won’t have a bit of a problem finding this place in the dark. With that big old roof and these lights, he’ll think he’s on a landing strip.”
Verdie laid a hand on Martin’s shoulder. “You got that right. When you get that strand up, you need to come inside for some hot chocolate and have some cookies. Your nose looks like it’s about to freeze and fall plumb off. A boy would look just plain weird without a nose.”
“Yes, ma’am. Now y’all got to come all the way to the back side of the house. We got a lot done.” Martin took off in a run, oblivious of the snow packing around the hem of his jeans.
“Boy needs boots,” Verdie mumbled right behind him.
Finn nodded. “I been tellin’ this stubborn woman that ever since they got here.”
“Don’t say a word to me about boots or snow or strays,” she said.
“I was fixin’ to tell you how beautiful you look out here in the snow.” Finn kissed her on the forehead in front of Verdie and Martin. Verdie winked. Martin made fake gagging noises.
She shook her head at him. “You were thinking about how right you were in the Western-wear store and how wrong I was. This isn’t our first rodeo, Finn. I practically lived inside your head for a whole year, remember?”
He shivered. “Yes, darlin’, I remember.”
“I know his feet are cold, but I still don’t want him to have cowboy boots.” Her body had stiffened and her tone was colder than the snow.
“Callie, you aren’t losing control, I promise,” he whispered.
“I’m not a control freak,” she said.
“Yes, you are, and with good reason, but it’s okay to let go,” Finn said.
“What are you two whispering about?” Martin yelled.
“Nothing,” Callie said. “We’re just talking about your Christmas presents.”
“I hope it’s cowboy boots. I want to grow up to be just like Finn.”
“We’ll talk about it later,” Callie said.
Finn whispered for Callie’s ears only, “And, honey, this is not the time or the place to pick a fight so you can get mad and run away.”
She took a few steps toward the porch. “You could just write my weekly paycheck, and I’ll…”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “You will what? Walk twenty miles to town? There’s very little traffic out there on those twisty roads, so you wouldn’t have much luck hitchhiking with a boy who doesn’t even have proper boots. You are the most bullheaded, stubborn woman I’ve ever encountered.”
She shook his arm from her shoulders and stormed into the house, slamming the door. He followed her, with Verdie and Martin right behind him. They stopped in the living room, but he followed her right into her bedroom, not giving a damn if he left bits of snow on the floor in his wake. He didn’t even knock on the door but plowed right into her room.
Callie was standing in front of the window, staring out like a bird in a cage. He crossed the room in long strides, scooped her up, and sat down in the rocking chair with her.
“I’m scared,” she said.
“I know. So am I.”
“This is too perfect, Finn. There’s a grenade somewhere, and the pin is pulled. It’s just a matter of time until it all goes boom. I figured if I left now, it would be with good memories and not horrible ones. But I don’t want to leave. Just thinking of walking away from you and Salt Draw, even Verdie and the animals, breaks my heart.”
He tangled his fingers in her hair
and held her head against his chest. “I’ll help you work through the fear if you’ll do the same for me.”
She drew her head back, her aqua-colored eyes swimming in tears. “Don’t bullshit me, O’Donnell. You’d face off with the devil.”
He let go of her hair and bent just enough that their lips touched in a salty kiss. Her arms sent desire shooting through his body when they laced around his neck. The kiss deepened into more as she opened her mouth and let his tongue inside to make love to her mouth.
“Darlin’, never doubt that my fears are every bit as big as yours, with commitment topping the list in big bold letters. Don’t run away, Callie. I need you to stay,” he whispered softly.
“I want to stay,” she said just before he kissed her again. She drew away and laid her head back on his chest. “We should go. They’ll be waiting.”
“They know how to make hot chocolate, and we don’t have to leave until you’re ready,” he said.
“I like it here. Can we stay forever?”
“We might get hungry.”
“There’s things other than food that will satisfy a body,” she whispered.
“But if the body is weak, it doesn’t perform too well, does it?” he chuckled.
“I’m not fighting any more today. I don’t have it in me. But I do have to tell you this before we go out there and get lectured by Verdie. Martin’s friends are going to be split up and sent to different homes on Sunday, and there doesn’t seem to be a damn thing we can do about it. He’s going to be so sad.”
“Then let’s go take our medicine from Verdie for fighting. Afterward we will make this place as happy as we can for him,” Finn said.
“I always wanted a grandmother like her,” Callie said, but she didn’t make a move to get up from his lap.
With his boot heel, he set the rocker into motion. “I have two just like her. Love them both. They’ll come see us in the spring, I’m sure. They didn’t help with the move, and my grandfathers will have lots of advice for the ranch.”
“You are a very lucky man,” she said.
His strong arm shifted to hold her tighter. “Yes, Callie, I am.”
A gentle knock on the door was followed by a low voice. “Callie, is it time for me to pack?”
“Is he crying?” Finn asked.
“Probably. I really have to go take care of this.” She hurried to open the door.
“Hush, kid. He’s not dead,” Joe said as he flitted from one side of his clothes dryer perch to the other.
Martin looked up at her with tears streaming down his face.
Verdie was right behind him, arms crossed, her wrinkled face drawn up in a frown.
Callie dropped down on her knees and hugged Martin. “Finn and I had a fight. We do that sometimes, but we aren’t leaving Salt Draw.”
“For real?” Martin asked.
“For real, son.” Finn laid a hand on Martin’s shoulder and one on Callie’s. “Arguments don’t mean that you have to pack up and run away. It takes a strong person to work it out, but your aunt has that kind of strength.”
Martin pushed away and dried his tears. “Callie is strong, ain’t she, Finn?”
“Yes, she is. I’m sure hungry. Did you leave me any cookies?”
Martin nodded and pointed toward his toes. “And look.”
Verdie pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes. “They was Patrick’s old work boots. ’Bout worn out, but I reckon they’ll do for a couple of weeks for him to do chores in. Could use a coat of polish later tonight, and he had to put two pair of socks on to fill up the toes. Patrick was a little man, only about five feet four inches, and he wore a small shoe. Bein’ little didn’t mean he wasn’t a fighter.”
“Thank you.” Callie swallowed hard against the lump in her throat.
“Now, Martin, you go on to the kitchen and finish up your last cookie while I talk to Finn and Callie.”
“Joe needs a cookie. Dog! Joe needs a cookie,” the bird fussed as he sharpened his beak on the wood rod under his feet.
Martin’s new boots sounded like size tens rather than the sixes they probably were as they clomped down the hallway.
Finn looped an arm around Callie’s waist and waited. “Are we in big trouble?”
Verdie nodded seriously. “Yes, you are. First thing is, this ain’t my place no more and it ain’t my business to fuss at y’all, but I love that kid and I can’t stand to see him cry. My dad gave me a bit of advice when our boys were little that I’m about to give y’all. You’re going to argue, but it’s your argument, not his. Don’t let him see it, and don’t go to bed angry with each other. We got enough of a feud goin’ on all around us. We don’t need one inside the walls of the house. Now let’s go have some cookies.”
Finn gave Callie a gentle squeeze. “Sounds like good advice to me.”
***
Martin was standing right under the phone when it rang, and it startled him so badly that he knocked over the chair below it. It hit the floor with a thud, and he grabbed the receiver before Verdie came out of the hallway to answer it. If anyone could talk sense to Callie and Finn, it was Verdie, and he sure didn’t want her to answer a telephone right then.
“Hello,” he said cautiously.
“Could I please talk to Martin Brewster?”
“Who is this?” he whispered.
“It’s me, Olivia. I have to talk low or Miz Beth will wake up. They’re sending us away on Sunday, Martin, and they’re going to split us up. We go to three different places, and that means we’ll never see each other again. The last place we was at, there was a boy there and they did this to him and his sister. He didn’t even know where she was anymore.”
“Oh no!” Martin gasped.
“We’re going to run away tonight.”
“Do you know where Salt Draw is?”
“It’s where the school bus gets you every morning. Down the road from us and then down a lane.”
“It’s all lit up for Christmas. You can see it from the road. I know you can. I’ll leave my light on so you can come around behind the house and knock on my window. Y’all can stay out in the tack room. You won’t freeze until we figure this out, Olivia. I’ll help you,” Martin said.
“I trust you, Martin. Will you watch for us?”
“I’ll leave my curtains open. Tap on my window when you get here. Here comes Granny Verdie. I got to go.”
Chapter 15
Callie kicked as much snow from her shoes as possible before she went inside the general store, then she stomped a few more times on the big rug in front of the door. “Glad I caught you before you closed up, Gladys. Verdie says we need flour, sugar, and cooking oil.”
“She called me and said to tell you to add baking soda to that.” Gladys tipped her head toward the back of the store.
Callie looked that way, and there was Betsy Gallagher. Their cold gazes locked as Betsy made her way right up into Callie’s space, not stopping until they were practically nose to nose.
“You are like a bitch in heat. You can’t be satisfied with one man hanging on you. Now you’ve got to go and mess up my cousin’s relationship with Orville. Ilene has been in love with Orville since they were in school. Do you want an ass whipping, woman?” Betsy’s tone got colder with each word.
“How in the hell did I do that? It was your damn feud that brought him to my door to begin with.”
“He brought you doughnuts. He’s never brought Ilene doughnuts,” Betsy said.
“That doesn’t mean a damn thing, so get out of my face, and, darlin’, you don’t want to call me a bitch again,” Callie said.
Betsy leaned in until they were nose to nose. “I call it like I see it.”
Callie smiled.
“What’s so funny…bitch?” Betsy drew out the last word.
“I think it’s funny that the Gallaghers want the sheriff in their back pocket so bad that they send one of their own out to seduce the poor old guy. I’m not stupid,” Callie whispered and rubbed her nos
e against Betsy’s.
Betsy jumped back and swiped a hand across her nose. “Don’t touch me.”
“Oh, darlin’, this relationship has gone too far for you to close me out now. Remember, I’m a bitch, and bitches rub noses with other bitches,” Callie said.
Betsy’s hand came up in a flash, but Callie was faster. She caught it midair and held it in a vise grip. When her left hand shot up, Callie caught it, too.
The woman shivered from head to toe and kicked Callie in the shin. “Are you a freakin’ crazy bitch?” she yelled.
Callie kept a grip on her hands and nipped her on the arm, leaving faint teeth marks but no blood. “Bitches are lady dogs. They bite. You had enough, or you want to call me that again? Next time, I promise there will be blood and you will need rabies shots.”
She shoved, and Betsy had to do a lot of fancy scrambling to keep from knocking down a display of canned peaches. When she finally got her balance, she stormed out of the store without looking back.
Gladys slapped the checkout counter and laughed so hard that she had to sit down. “I swear to God that was the funniest damn thing I’ve ever seen. If Honey wasn’t so hell-bent on having Finn, the Brennans would invite you into their fold with open arms.”
“I don’t want to be a part of none of their shit. I just want to live my life and be left alone,” Callie said.
“Then you come to the wrong part of Texas,” Gladys said.
Callie steamed all the way home and didn’t even feel the cold from truck to kitchen. She carried in the groceries and set them on the cabinet before she even noticed the doughnuts on the table.
“Shit!” she mumbled. “That’s all I need today.”
“That you, Callie?” Verdie yelled from her room.
“Yes, it is.”
“I made part of the yeast dough into doughnuts. Just finished fryin’ and glazin’ them. They’re on the table if you want one to warm up. Coffee is fresh.” Verdie’s voice got closer with each word.
“Well, hot damn!” Callie said.
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