"Why were you driving out here?" she asked idly, because the tension coiling in her stomach threatened to erupt.
He didn't answer. She angled herself at his side, and being there gave her a view of his cheeks as color rose high in his face.
She kept wiping his arm, finally taking his hand in hers. "Hmm?" she prompted when he remained silent.
"You weren't supposed to be home," he muttered.
He'd been coming here?
She'd seen the stack of two-by-fours in the back of his truck. But the kitchen was completed. What then...?
It came to her in a rush. She liberally applied antibiotic ointment to his scrape and then stuck the largest bandage she had on it.
He watched her with his neck craned back, and when she'd finished securing the bandage, he stood up.
"Thanks for patching me up." He rubbed the back of his neck.
"You came to build Mikey's treehouse."
"You were supposed to be at the water park," he said. His eyes were anguished.
"You're still gonna build me my treehouse?"
Mikey darted into the room. He must've been eavesdropping in the dining room.
Kelly dropped one hand on Mikey's head and fished in his front jeans pocket with the other, coming up with several sheets of notebook paper. He laid four flat on the table. The first was an almost-perfect copy of the sketch Mikey had shown him. The second was of the underside of the structure, showing support beams. The third and fourth showed details of the interior from two angles.
"If it's okay with your mom, I think we can finish it today."
Mikey looked up at him with equal parts shock and hope. "You want me to help?"
"It's your treehouse, isn't it?" But the pleading glance he cut to Anna said differently.
He'd planned to be here when they were gone, out of deference for Anna.
She kept her eyes on Kelly as she said, "Mikey, honey, can you go check on Gina for me? Don't wake her up, just peek into her room."
"Aw, mom..."
"I need to talk to Kelly."
Her son sighed loudly, making no effort to hide his annoyance. She squeezed his shoulders, blinking back images of how easily she could have lost him. "Thank you."
When he'd gone, the tension rose between her and Kelly, and she couldn't hold his gaze. She moved to where her hip brushed the corner of the table and allowed her fingers to trace the edge of one of the sketches. "I can't believe you did this."
He remained silent. Maybe he was waiting for her to kick him out. Or say her piece and then kick him out.
She gathered her tattered courage and looked up to find him watching her.
"I think... I made a mistake."
His eyes shadowed. He ducked his head. "The kiss?"
"No."
His head jerked up.
She took a step toward him, her hand gripping the back of one of the kitchen chairs. Swallowed back her fear. "When Ted died, I thought a part of me died with him. The only thing that kept me going was knowing the kids needed me."
Compassion lit his eyes.
Maybe she swayed toward him, or maybe he moved toward her, but suddenly the gap between them had narrowed.
"It's taken a long time for me to come back to life. And when you showed up on my doorstep, it was like waking up. Or maybe like when your arm or leg goes numb and then wakes up and you feel pinpricks of sensation. It hurt... at first."
She was babbling like Mikey.
She lifted her chin and met his eyes squarely. "And then, it scared me. Remembering just how lost I was when Ted died... I didn't think I could be strong enough to do that a second time. It felt like too big of a risk."
He seemed to understand the past tense of her statement, because his hands rubbed up behind her wrists, up her arms and rested behind her elbows, pulling her in close.
She let her hands settle at his waist.
He brushed a kiss against her temple. "And now?"
Her hands flexed against him. "After this morning..." She didn't know how to explain what she realized. It all seemed so silly now. "There's risk everywhere."
She leaned forward, and her chin brushed his chest. Shuddered, thinking about what could have happened to the both of them.
"Now that I'm awake again, I can't go back to sleep," she whispered.
One of his hands cupped the back of her head tenderly. "I wish I could be a sure bet for you," he murmured. "With all the junk in my past... All I can do is try every day to prove to you that I'm a different man than I was before."
She tipped her head back so they were face-to-face, so close. "I'm falling in love with the man you are now."
Intense emotion flooded his eyes, and he squeezed them shut, leaning his forehead against hers.
His breath warmed her lips, and then he opened his eyes, examining every inch of her face. "I..."
He couldn't seem to find words, but he kissed her temple, her cheek, her nose and forehead. Then he claimed her mouth.
For the first time since he'd come back into her life, she let herself go in the kiss, let emotion—love—roll over her in a crashing wave.
And while the fear was still there, it didn't engulf her.
Kelly broke the kiss, tucking her close to his chest. "I love you, Anna. I think I've been in love with you since the day I met you, but back then I didn't know what it really meant."
He kissed the top of her head. "If you want to go slow, we'll go slow. I can drive up from the city once a week..."
She tilted her head back again. "Maybe not that slow..."
The joy shining from his eyes was unmistakeable, and it connected with a matching joy deep within her.
Kelly leaned in and brushed her lips with his.
"Mom! Are you kissing Mr. Kelly?"
She broke from Kelly's embrace, but not too far, because she wrapped one arm around his waist.
Mikey's expression was hopeful and half-ornery.
"You think it would be all right if I started seeing more of your mom?"
Mikey's head bobbed in an enthusiastic nod. He came further into the kitchen, and Anna reached out to ruffle his hair. "You two had better get to work on that treehouse before it gets too hot outside. I'll call you when it's time to come in for lunch."
Mikey ran out the back door, boots slapping against the new tiled floor.
Kelly followed her son but threw one last glance over his shoulder, one just as full of hope and joy as Mikey's had been.
Epilogue
146 days later
Anna watched as Kelly and Mikey passed the football, racing down the field. Several boys from Mikey's third grade class, along with their dads, had coordinated the impromptu no-tackle game.
She held Gina on her lap, soaking up possibly the last nice autumn day. Though the sun was out, the November air had a definite bite to it.
"Whoo-hoo!"
"Go Mikey!"
The dual shouts from behind her heralded Lila and Melody's presence as they flopped down on the blanket beside her.
"Lila!" Gina abandoned Anna's lap to throw herself at Lila, who caught her with a laugh.
"What are you guys doing here?" Anna caught sight of the blue streak in Melody's hair and raised her eyebrows, but her friend just shrugged with an enigmatic smile.
"We saw your car and thought we'd stop and see what you were up to," Melody said. "You've been spending all your time with Kelly."
"I have not." Anna playfully nudged her friend's shoulder. They'd had a girls' night earlier in the week and driven to Weatherford for manicures and a late dinner, then chatted until far too late in the night.
Mikey ran by with a "hey, mom!" and Anna whistled loudly and clapped.
"Who is that?" Lila asked, her eyes on one of the players jogging across the field.
Melody openly gaped. "He's fine."
"His name is Weston Moore. He's a prodigal, like you, Lila."
Anna remembered him well from high school. He'd been on the fringe. Not someone she'
d hung around with. He'd had a reputation for recklessness, especially with girls' hearts.
He'd been wild.
A little bit like Lila, who was now contemplating Melody's ongoing narrow-eyed stare of the handsome blond.
Weston would be much better suited to Lila and her flare for adventure.
But there was still one thing Lila hadn't faced.
"Have you been out to the ranch yet?" Anna asked, drawing both Melody and Lila's attention. Lila's expression went from open and laughing to pinched and closed off in less than a heartbeat.
"I guess that's a no."
Since Lila's return to town seven months ago, she'd been avoiding returning to her family's ranch. Her mom and dad had passed away, and the ranch continued working under the management of foreman Ben Taylor. He'd been after Lila since before she'd returned home to come out to the property and make some hard decisions about what to do with it.
Anna had known Lila back in elementary school, before Lila had gone away, but she didn't know the mystery of why her close-mouthed friend didn't want to go home.
Before she could push for more details—or revisit Melody's interest in Weston—Kelly rushed off of the makeshift football field and collapsed on the edge of the blanket. Conveniently, his head fell in Anna's lap.
"I'm too old for this," he gasped, pushing his sweaty fringe of bangs off his forehead. "Your son is running circles around me."
Refusing to be ignored, Gina abandoned Lila and jumped onto Kelly's stomach, making him double up with an "oomph!" before he commenced tickling her.
"Get off of me, you heathens," Anna said with a laugh, pushing at his sweaty shoulders.
But Kelly and Gina just gave each other a long look and then tickled Anna as her friends scooted out of the danger zone.
When she'd subdued them with a squirt from Mikey's water bottle, she pushed her now-tangled hair out of her eyes and shook her head. "Never go after the mama bear," she said, mock-seriously even as she pointed the water bottle at Kelly.
His eyes promised retribution for later, but the corners of his mouth pulled in a smile.
The football players dispersed, and Gina ran off toward Mikey, leaving Anna and Kelly shoulder-to-shoulder on the blanket with Lila and Melody angled beside them.
"So..." Lila said with a leading pause. "We're dying to know how serious you guys are."
Anna's face went hot, but not because of the question.
"We know you started out taking things slow," Melody added. "But it's been months. Are you guys going to tie the knot or what?"
She felt the instant tension in Kelly, but she didn't dare look up at him. Since the day he'd declared his feelings for her, he'd been careful not to push too fast. She'd been planning to talk to him about this very subject—tonight, in fact—but not in front of her friends. She sent a glare their way, then thought better of it.
After all, they'd started it all when they'd pushed her to accept his help with the kitchen.
Why not give them what they wanted?
She cocked her head up at the man who'd changed her life since he'd come back into it. "Well...?"
He looked down to her, his eyebrows shooting up to his hairline. "Well, what?"
"We have been moving pretty slowly. What do you think about taking it up a notch?"
His eyes narrowed slightly as his hand settled on hers on the blanket between them. "What exactly are you saying?"
She ignored the giggles and whispers from her friends behind her. It wasn't easy. "I'm saying I think we should get married. Not today. But... soon." She hadn't told him yet, but the small claims court had judged in her favor against her former contractor, and she had socked the money away for a wedding.
Something lit deep in his eyes. Like he was afraid to grab onto the hope she was giving him. "Are you sure?"
Nerves bubbled in her stomach. "Are you sure?" she returned.
Now his eyes had a spark of another kind. He stood and pulled her to her feet. "Honey, I've been sure since the day you got me up on that horse for the first time. Sure enough to carry this around." He slipped a hand into his jeans pocket and came up with a small black drawstring bag. He opened it and dumped a sparkling diamond ring into his opposite palm.
"Well, then we're both sure." But that didn't stop her hand from trembling as he placed the solitaire on her finger and lifted her hand to kiss her palm.
"They're both sure," Lila stage-whispered.
Melody's words were a gibberish squeal that drew Mikey and Gina, who started dancing and shouting until the whole park knew their news.
In the middle of all the commotion, Kelly spun her in a wild circle, his deep laugh reverberating through them both.
He finally set her down, touching his forehead to hers. "I love you."
"I love you, too," she returned.
He lowered his head to kiss her, his lips smiling against hers at Mikey's "aw, not again."
"You'd better get used to it," Lila muttered.
Dear Reader
Thanks for reading the Heart of Oklahoma series. Turn the page for an excerpt from the next book...
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Jingle Bell Cowgirl sneak peek
Ben Taylor stood in the church vestibule and allowed the diminutive Velma Potts to drape a brown robe from the VBS costume closet over his shoulders.
It was weird being in the building with everything quiet and dark. He was used to all the lights on, not just the few in the foyer that Velma had lit. And the familiar smell of coffee and donuts was missing.
"I'm glad to see you're getting back in the spirit of the holiday, dear."
He tried to smile, but it felt more like his lips stretched across his teeth. He didn't feel in the spirit. Not at all.
Did they really expect him to stand outside on the lawn for hours in this getup?
He would freeze his butt off. Already he fought the urge to rub the scar under his ribs, just thinking about it tightening up in the cold.
Why had he agreed to this, again?
Because Velma had told him Lila had agreed. And he was ready to end this Mexican standoff they'd been playing at.
Although worrying about Lila provided some distraction from his memories of Mia. Christmas had always been Mia's favorite season. She'd decorate the entire house well before Thanksgiving and sing carols from Halloween through December twenty-fifth.
After her death four years ago, he'd boxed up the decorations and tried to ignore the season passing. Stayed on the ranch.
Sometimes he still walked in the door after a long day in the barn and expected to see her just around the corner.
Maybe he should've moved away after her death. Maybe that would've been easier. They'd fallen in love here in Redbud Trails. Made memories that he relived everywhere he went.
But he'd made Tom Andrews, Lila's father, a promise before the old man had died. To bring Lila home and teach her the ranch. Turn it over to her when she was ready.
It was a difficult task when she refused to set foot on the property. And when he saw the shadows in her eyes every time he mentioned it.
He didn't understand why she wouldn't come home. She was the rightful owner of a nice-sized ranch. A profitable one.
But she hadn't come home even when her parents had died. She cashed the checks he sent to her ever-changing address. Never answered his emails, including the last one that he'd intended to push her buttons. He'd asked if she wanted to sell the place.
Was she or was she not going to take over the operation?
He was determined to find out, and if he had to wear this costume and freeze his bum off for a couple of days, so be it.
Lila came in the door with a rush of cold air, her hair blowing out of her bun and into her eyes.
She brushed at the fine wisps, her head turning toward him and Velma.
And when her
hair and her hand had cleared her vision, her gaze collided with his.
"What...?" Her eyes snagged on the robe or his chest—he'd like to think it was his chest—and stuck.
"Am I doing here?" He finished when it seemed she wouldn't complete her sentence. "Getting fitted, same as you."
She started backing away, shaking her head, but good ol' Velma was too quick for her. Velma had Lila's elbow in her clutches before Lila'd even realized it. She pushed the shocked woman almost shoulder-to-shoulder with him and draped some tan material around her.
"I don't think this is a good idea," Lila mumbled.
He was starting to agree with her as their shoulders brushed and a twang of something lit up his insides. Looking sideways at her, he couldn't help noticing the wind outside had pinked her cheeks. Usually she kept her hair more tamed, pulled back in a severe braid or ponytail, but her bun was slipping, and strands of her dark, almost black hair curled around her face.
Her dishevelment made her seem more approachable. And he knew she wasn't. She was as cool as this frigid winter.
It wasn't the first time he'd felt the zing of attraction between them. He really couldn't help it—Lila was slender and tall and exceptionally beautiful. He was six foot himself, and even now her forehead was about even with his chin.
The perfect height to kiss.
The thought struck him right between the eyebrows. Painfully, he shook off his distraction.
"I think we can say this fits," he told Velma as he shrugged out of the costume. He draped it across a nearby high-backed chair then turned and crossed his arms, waiting for Lila to be finished.
He'd gotten this close to her. It was time to press her for a decision. Time for her to come home.
* * *
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