Coming Home

by Shirlee Busbee

  They nestled together on the couch, speaking in low murmurs, kissing, caressing, and exchanging those words that only lovers share. It could have been an hour or only moments, but eventually, arms entwined, they wandered off to bed.

  When they made love that night, it might have been imagination, but each touch, each caress, each kiss, seemed richer, more intense, and the sensations they shared seemed more powerful, more meaningful than previously. It was magic. It was love.

  Later, lying with her head on his shoulder, their hands locked together, they spoke quietly about their love. “I almost need to pinch myself,” Roxanne said at one point. “It seems like a dream.”

  “If you'll give me a couple more minutes,” Jeb murmured, lazy amusement in his voice, “I'll show you it's no dream.”

  Roxanne giggled and, twisting her head slightly, blew in his ear. “Hey! Cut that out,” Jeb grumbled. “No fair when I'm too weak to retaliate.”

  Dawg indicated that she and Boss had been polite long enough and that it was urgent they be put outside. Muttering and complaining, Jeb snapped on a light and scrambled into the nearest available clothing. Half dressed and loath to leave Roxanne, he wandered out the front door to keep an eye on the dogs while they took care of nature's calling. They didn't take long.

  Back inside, Dawg rushed ahead and made a beeline for her side of the bed, curling up against Roxanne's back. Coming into the room, Jeb eyed the dog. “I guess romance is over for tonight.”

  Roxanne sent him a seductive smile. “I can always push her off onto the floor.”

  Jeb shook his head and crawled into bed beside Roxanne. Turning to flick out the lamp near the bed, he said, “Nope, that's all right. Besides, we've still got important things to talk about.”

  “Oh? And what would that be?”

  “Such as when and where we get married.”

  Roxanne yawned and snuggled closer. “Can't be soon enough for me. Reno, tomorrow would suit me just fine.”

  Jeb shifted, his gaze incredulous. “Are you serious?”

  “Sure. Why not?” She reached up and kissed his chin. “I want to marry you. And unless it's what you want, I don't want a big, elaborate wedding. Quick and quiet is my preference.” She made a face. “Very quick and very quiet—especially if we don't want the paparazzi to find out about it and hound us to death.”

  Jeb hadn't thought about that aspect of it. That the news media might be interested in their wedding hadn't even occurred to him. He didn't care what kind of a wedding ceremony they had—he'd been through the big wedding routine—twice. But he didn't want to deny Roxanne her moment in the sun.

  “Are you sure?” he asked uncertainly. “Reno sounds great to me, but, honey, I've done the splashy wedding before—you haven't. Are you sure you don't want to get married here in the valley surrounded by our families and friends?”

  Roxanne sat up, her hair falling in glorious disarray around her shoulders. “Jeb, what do you want?

  ” His eyes traveled over her silky skin, lingering tinthe tempting thrust of her naked breasts. “You,” he said thickly. “Only you.”

  “Then Reno it is, just as soon and as quiet as we can arrange it.”

  How they got through the next couple of days, they never knew. It had been decided that on Friday morning, they'd leave the valley, drive the six or seven hours to Reno, stay the night, get married, and drive back in time to attend the dinner at Jeb's parents'. The time in between was magical and passed in a blur. Jeb knew he got strange looks at work; the perpetually goofy grin on his face might have been the reason. He didn't care. He was so happy, he felt certain his feet never hit the ground.

  Roxanne was little better. She giggled. Constantly. And caught herself laughing aloud for absolutely no reason at all. She was giddy with delight; drunk on happiness.

  And when they were together it was even worse. They laughed. Made love. And laughed some more, before making love again. They lay in bed each night, whispering and giggling over their elopement to Reno like a pair of teenagers.

  Thursday night, Jeb dropped off Dawg and Boss at his house, locking the dogs in their kennel with the promise that he wasn't deserting them forever. The looks they gave him told him they didn't believe one word of it. He'd already made arrangements with Mingo to feed and water the dogs on Friday and Saturday so he could leave them with only a slightly guilty conscience. “I'll be back, guys,” he said softly, tickling their noses through the kennel fence. “And then we'll all move up to Roxanne's for good. You'll like that, won't you?”

  Dawg whined and licked his fingers. Boss sniffed, turned his back on Jeb, and sauntered off to the doghouse. Clearly he was not impressed.

  Roxanne and Jeb made good time on Friday, leaving Oak Valley just after daylight. The traffic and weather cooperated, no pileups or storms to slow them down. They arrived in Reno in the early afternoon. Roxanne was media shy and suggested that they wait until almost closing to purchase the wedding license. Wryly she'd said, “Less time for the news to leak.” So they drove around checking out wedding chapels. They found a little ivy covered place tucked off the main drag and after talking with the couple who ran it, made an appointment for 9:00 A.M. the next morning.

  Buying the license made it clear to Jeb that Roxanne had been smart to suggest a quick and quiet wedding. The clerk behind the counter recognized Roxanne's name, and despite Roxanne's halfhearted attempts at a disguise, scarf and sunglasses, she took a second look and gasped, “Oh, my! It is you!” Her words were heard by everyone in the vicinity and in seconds Roxanne and Jeb were the objects of an excited group of coworkers.

  Roxanne was nice about it. She smiled and answered questions and autographed the slips of paper that were thrust at her. Several minutes later, she and Jeb made their escape.

  “Think they'll notify the news?” Jeb asked as he started the truck.

  Roxanne shrugged. “Probably, but by the time they run us down, we'll be married and headed out of town—I hope.”

  Wedding rings were next and they lingered over their selection. They finally decided on heavy, plain gold bands adorned with delicate filigree. Staring at the ring on her finger, Roxanne's eyes filled with tears. Jeb must have guessed her emotions, because he took her hand and kissed the trembling finger wearing the gold band. She smiled mistily at him.

  The people who ran the chapel proved to be discreet and to Roxanne's relief they were not greeted that morning by a shouting horde of news media. She wasn't even sure if she had been recognized. Neither the gentleman who would marry them, nor his wife and secretary who would act as witnesses, gave any sign that she and Jeb were anything other than just another couple getting married.

  The chapel was tiny; three golden oak pews on either side of the room provided seating for guests. The walls were white, broken only by two stained glass windows on either side of the chapel, and the thick carpet was a tasteful swirl of rose and cream. On each side of the tiny altar, bouquets of pink and white gladiolus, baby's breath, and ferns stood in tall pale green vases. The man who would marry them, wearing a dark blue suit, was standing there waiting for them, his wife and secretary smiling as they waited just off to the side. Jeb gave Roxanne a quick kiss and then hurried down the short aisle to await his bride. A second later the sounds of the wedding march filled the room from speakers on each side of the room.

  Roxanne had chosen to be married in a pale peach silk pantsuit with a matching broad-brimmed hat that framed her face. Jeb had surprised her that morning by arranging for a charming bridal bouquet of deep apricot-hued baby roses and white carnations to be delivered to the suite at the hotel where they had stayed. She'd teared up when he'd handed them to her.

  “Oh, damn,” she half laughed, half cried. “You're ruining my makeup.”

  “And I'll ruin it a lot more later on,” Jeb murmured, wiggling his brows.

  As Roxanne walked down the aisle, she was aware of nothing but Jeb standing there, tall and handsome in a dark gray suit. Until this morning
when he'd put it on, she'd never seen him in a suit and he'd taken her breath away. He still did, she thought, as she drew nearer. He always would.

  It was a simple ceremony, but meant so much to the pair of them. And when they had promised to love, honor, and obey and exchanged their first kiss as man and wife, Roxanne thought she'd melt right there in a puddle of love at Jeb's feet. Smiling into her face, Jeb said, “Hi, Mrs. Delaney.”

  Roxanne's eyes filled with tears again, but she managed to say, “Hi there, husband.”

  Afraid the paparazzi might still run them down in Reno, as soon as the paperwork was finished, they turned the truck west and lit out like bandits for home. The long drive to Oak Valley seemed to pass in minutes. They were so busy making plans for the future, speculating on how the news of their sudden and unexpected marriage was going to take the valley.

  “Are your parents going to be unhappy that they didn't get to see you married?” Jeb asked as they left 1-5 and turned onto Highway 20.

  Roxanne shook her head. “They'll be taken aback, but then I'm always surprising them, so no, I don't think they'll be disappointed. Don't forget when Samantha was married they got to put on a huge affair. I remember Mom saying afterward, only half teasing I think, that one big fancy wedding was enough for any parent to suffer through. And they were there to see Shelly and Sloan married.” Roxanne looked thoughtful. “Of course they did miss Dica's wedding ….” She made a face. “I guess the less said about that the better.”

  “I agree.”

  “What about your folks? Think they'll be upset that we eloped?”

  “Nope. I think they'll be so glad that I'm not wasting away into a bitter old bachelor that they'll probably fall on your neck with gratitude.” He slanted her a smiling glance. “Think you can handle it.”

  “With you at my side,” she said softly, “I can handle anything.”

  Jeb reached for her hand lying on the seat beside him and lifting it to his mouth, kissed it. Holding hands, their drive continued.

  It was after five o'clock when they finally reached home and they dashed from the truck to the house. Mindful of the six o'clock dinner, they quickly showered and dressed and less than forty-five minutes later they were out the door driving to Jeb's parents' house.

  Roxanne and Mingo had been classmates all through school and she'd spent some happy times at the Delaney home either planning rallies or school dances or attending parties, so the long, low log style home was familiar to her. It was an old comfortable house built by Jeb's grandfather; the logs had been felled on Delaney land around the turn of the century. The house had covered porches on three sides and in the spring and summer was covered with wildly blooming wisteria and white roses. Roxanne remembered the sweet scent of the roses that had perfumed the air. If she was familiar with the house, she was also very familiar with the Judge and KC and had always liked them, but as she and Jeb pulled up in front of the rambling ranch house, a knot formed in her belly. It was one thing to enter the house as a classmate of Mingo's and another as the wife of their eldest son.

  She bit her lip, looking uneasily at the house, watching the smoke rise from the stone chimney in the middle of the dark shake roof. “Are you sure 'Your parents are going to be happy about this? What if they hate me? I mean they don't know me as an adult.” She swallowed, twisting her gold wedding band around and around her finger. “There's been a lot written about me that wouldn't make me every parents' dream bride for their son.”

  Jeb glanced at her, surprised. It never occurred to him that Roxanne might be nervous about meeting his folks as his bride. “Princess, I can't guarantee how they'll react, but I doubt they'll eat you alive. And remember I'm a big boy—I don't need their permission to get married.” He smiled and added slyly, “Surely you're not afraid of them?”

  Roxanne's chin lifted, as he'd known it would, and she gave a toss of her head. “Of course not! Let's go and get it over with.”

  Smiling to himself, Jeb got out of the truck and walked around to open the door for her. Holding her in his arms he waved his hand in front of her eyes, the fading sunlight glinting on the gold band. “We're married, honey, and nothing is going to change that. Nothing.” Huskily he added, “You only have to remember one thing: I love you.”

  “Oh, and I love you, too,” she breathed, stars peeping into her eyes.

  KC and the Judge met them at the door. They were a striking couple. The Judge would turn seventy years old in July, but he still stood as tall and ramrod straight as he had in his youth. It was easy for Roxanne to see how Jeb might look in another twenty-five years or so when she looked at his father. The Judge's thick hair was silver and he continued to sport the Clark Gable mustache he had all his adult life even though these days there were more silver hairs in it than black. Jeb had inherited his height, build, and black eyes from his father, but it was obvious that his stubborn jawline and mouth had come from KC.

  KC was a tall woman, and approaching sixty-five, her hair was steel gray. She wore it short and straight in a no-nonsense cut with only the hint of wave over her brow. Even in her youth, KC would have been labeled “handsome” rather than pretty; with age those strong features had only grown more handsome. She was outspoken, quite able to put even the Judge in his place when necessary.

  There were the usual exchange of greetings and Roxanne was welcomed into the house, receiving a thorough look over and a warm hug from the Judge and a big smile and a kiss on the cheek from KC. As she entered the house and was shown into the spacious living room, she was aware that Jeb's mother was discreetly sizing her up; she could almost feel the curiosity radiating from KC's body. KC hadn't noticed the wedding bands yet, but to Roxanne it felt as if her wedding ring was the size of an elephant, sitting right there on her finger in plain sight for everyone to see.

  The first person Roxanne spied as she walked into the living room was Mingo. Wearing blue jeans and a navy-blue patterned western-cut, long-sleeved shirt, he was sprawled on a dark green leather couch, a bottle of beer resting on the low oak coffee table in front of him. Curled up in a chair on the other side of the room, near the stone fireplace, was Cheyenne, Jeb and Mingo's sister—and the only one of the three children who had followed in their father's footsteps. She had graduated from Yale Law School at the top of her class and had almost immediately started working in the Mendocino County District Attorney's Office. Cheyenne had been born late in the lives of the Judge and KC and she had only been about seven years old when Roxanne had left the valley.

  Cheyenne was living proof that genetics is a crap-shoot. To her chagrin, coming from a family known for its tallness and striking good looks, she only stood five feet two in her bare feet. Worse, she had a pug nose, a wide mouth, and ginger-colored hair and looked, she claimed, like a marginally intelligent monkey. Cheyenne was too hard on herself. She was very intelligent and if she would never be called a beauty, she had a gamine attractiveness and a smile that lit up the darkest day.

  Meeting Roxanne's eyes, Cheyenne flashed that smile and stood up. “I remember you from a kid, but I don't think we've ever officially met. I'm Cheyenne.”

  The two women shook hands, both of them liking what they saw.

  Cheyenne glanced at Jeb standing right behind Roxanne. The smile became a wicked grin. “Oh, man, are you ever brave to bring a woman home,” she said to her elder brother. “Mom's been all atwitter since you told her.”

  “You've got that right,” Mingo chimed in. “You'd have thought the Queen of England was coming for dinner. She's been cleaning and cooking and warning us all to be on our best behavior.” He grinned at Roxanne. “It's been years since Jeb brought a woman home, Mom doesn't want us to frighten you off.”

  KC lifted a brow and tried to look haughty. “I don't know how it is that I have such gabby children. I have not been 'atwitter,” she said grandly, her blue eyes dancing. “I've been thrilled!” She beamed at Roxanne. “I always thought you were a nice young woman—despite the tabloids—and I'm delig
hted that Jeb's had the good sense to realize it, too.”

  “Now, now,” said the. Judge from across the big room where he stood at a bamboo and brass bar lining up several glasses on the polished top. “Don't scare the poor girl off.” He glanced back at Roxanne. “May I interest you in a drink?” A small smile played at the corner of his mouth, and those shrewd black eyes dropped to Roxanne's hand where it hung at her side. “Perhaps champagne? Because unless I'm mistaken, this is going to turn into a very special event.”

  KC, Mingo, and Cheyenne looked puzzled. Roxanne gasped, her eyes widening, and Jeb laughed and shook his head.

  “Spotted them right off, did you?” he asked his father, one hand resting comfortingly on Roxanne's shoulder, his gold band obvious against his dark skin.

  “Indeed. I was, you may remember, a judge for many years. Had to size up people in an instant. Figure out who was lying and who was telling the truth.” He tapped the corner of his eye. “Nothing escapes these eagle eyes.”

  KC was staring transfixed at Jeb's hand lying on Roxanne's shoulder. Her mouth formed a big o. Her gaze dropped to Roxanne's hand, honing in on the gold band. She let out a loud shriek and a smile as big as Texas covered her face. “My prayers have been answered,” she cried. “Oh, yes, I do think that champagne is definitely in order.” She grabbed Roxanne and hugged her tight. “You naughty, naughty children—I may not speak to you for thirty seconds. When?”

  “This morning at nine o'clock in Reno,” Jeb said proudly. “You're the first to know.”

  It was bedlam for a few minutes, congratulations and questions flying around the room. Once things had settled down, KC said briskly, “Well, I'm not starting out at odds with my new in-laws.” She looked at Roxanne. “Go call your parents and tell them the news and tell them to get over here for dinner. No excuses. We have a wedding to celebrate.”

  It was a celebration. Roxanne's parents were as surprised as Jeb's, but they took the news of the sudden wedding in stride. They arrived at the Delaneys' less than twenty minutes later.