brides for brothers 14 - a randall thanksgiving

by Judy Christenberry

  “There’s a fair number,” Tori replied. “Including my latest.”

  “Another baby? How many have you had?”

  “Just three. And he may be my last.”

  “You sound kind of sad about that,” Melissa noted. “I thought you intended to be a career woman.”

  “I did. But Jon…well, he was just too hard to resist.” She laughed. “Men can be like that, you know.”

  “I think I do.”

  “I bet you just bat your lashes and they fall to their knees all around you.”

  “Not exactly,” Melissa replied darkly.

  Tori’s eyebrows soared. “Oh? Was it in France or here in Rawhide?”

  “Here, and it’s no big deal. I think Dad was trying to play matchmaker like Uncle Jake.”

  “And you went along with it?”

  “Yeah. The guy was kind of cute and I thought I might enjoy my trip more if I had someone to go out with. I’m only going to be here for about six weeks.”

  “And he wasn’t interested? The man must be made out of stone…or married. You wouldn’t try to date a married man, would you, Melissa? I mean, I know that some people are different about things like that, but it wouldn’t— I mean, here in Rawhide, it’s not—”

  Before Tori could try again to explain the mores in Rawhide, Melissa told her, “Remember, I said my dad had set me up? I don’t think he’d choose a married man for me.”

  “Oh, right, of course.”

  “And just for the record, I wouldn’t go for a married man, either, here or in France.”

  “I’m sorry for even thinking that, Melissa, but you’ve been gone so long and the French—”

  “I know. But I’m a Randall, not a Frenchman.”

  Tori smiled. “Good. So who gave you a hard time?”

  “You probably don’t know him.”

  “In Rawhide? You’ve got to be kidding.”

  “Okay, it was Harry Gowan.”

  “Harry? Harry was mean to you?” Tori asked in disbelief.

  “I didn’t say he was mean. He was just…disinterested.”

  “He must be going blind, honey. You’re beautiful, what with that hairstyle and your makeup.”

  “Am I wearing too much makeup?”

  “No. I keep staring at your eyes. They look so natural but they stand out. I’m impressed.”

  “It’s because I got Mom’s blue eyes with Dad’s hair color. Around here, all the Randalls seem to be brown-eyed.”

  “You’ve got a point there. But Jess and I don’t look like regular Randalls, either,” said the blond, blue-eyed Tori.

  “I know. I always liked that about you two. How is Jessica?”

  “She’s due any day now.”

  “More babies? I’ll never keep them straight!”

  “Yes, you will. Give it time. Just remember, we’re all family.”

  As if on cue, the door opened and Russ entered the outer office.

  “Hey, Russ,” Melissa said, hugging her cousin. “I haven’t seen you in six years. Looks like fatherhood agrees with you.”

  He gave her a kiss on the cheek. “You’ve certainly grown up.”

  “Thank you, kind sir.”

  “Where are you two headed?” he asked as Melissa and Tori walked toward the door.

  “We’re going over to the café for lunch,” Tori said.

  “I think I’ll join you. I can have a piece of pie while y’all eat your lunch.”

  “I thought one of us was going to stay at the office all the time. Isn’t that what we decided?” Tori asked.

  “Yeah, but today’s a special occasion.” He winked at Melissa. “I’ll just tell Cora to call my cell if something comes up.”

  “Be quick about it,” Tori said. “We’re both starving.”

  A few seconds later Russ held open the door, and the two women went out. They’d reached the other side of the street when, behind them, they heard Russ greet someone.

  “Why don’t you join us? I’ll buy you a piece of pie,” Russ called out.

  The women turned around, and that was when Melissa came face-to-face with the living, breathing cause of her irritation.

  Harry Gowan.

  Chapter Two

  Melissa held her breath as she waited for Harry’s answer. It confused her that she didn’t even know what she wanted most—for him to accept the invitation or to reject it.

  “Thanks, Russ, but I’m on duty. Mike frowns on me spending all my time in the café.” He added a smile, which was more than he’d done for her.

  “I understand. But let me introduce my long lost cousin Melissa, Griff and Camille’s daughter. She’s been living in France.”

  Without looking her way, he replied, “I met her last night. She seems to be adjusting well.”

  Melissa stomped her foot. “Quit talking about me like I’m not here!”

  He finally looked at her. “Certainly, Miss Randall.” Then he quickly averted his gaze. “See you ’round, Russ, Tori.” And he walked away.

  Tori and Russ stared after him, and looked at Melissa.

  “What?” she demanded, feeling defensive.

  Russ said, “Let’s get our table. Then we’ll talk.”

  Once they were seated and had gotten their coffee and given their orders, Russ turned to Melissa. “You’ve only been here a few days. How have you managed to upset one of the nicest guys in town?”

  “Are you referring to Harry Gowan?” Melissa demanded. “Because he hasn’t been so nice to me!”

  Russ glanced at Tori. “What’s going on? Are they already involved?”

  “No!” Melissa nearly spat out her coffee.

  Tori put a calming hand on her arm, then explained, “It’s another case of a father matchmaking for his daughter, a Randall pastime, you know. And apparently, though I find it hard to believe, Harry wasn’t interested.”

  Russ shifted his gaze to Melissa. “I’m surprised. I figured guys would be lined up for the opportunity to get close to you, Melissa.”

  “Thank you, but apparently I only appeal to men with loose morals,” she said glumly.

  “Who in particular?” Russ asked sternly.

  She rolled her eyes. “You’re as bad as Harry.”

  “Wait a minute. I’m getting confused. Where does Harry come in?”

  Melissa sighed. “Harry warned me last night not to go outside with Dwight Barnes. And Dad said I should bake him some cookies to say thank you. So I did, because I wanted to please Dad. But Harry wouldn’t even take the cookies.”

  “What did you do with them?” Russ asked.

  “I hit him in the stomach with the box and walked out. I don’t know what he did with them after that. Probably threw them in the trash!”

  “Oh, my,” Tori said softly.

  “It wasn’t my fault. I did what Dad asked.”

  “I guess you did. But just a word of warning,” Russ said with a smile. “Harry is a favorite with the family and he’s frequently invited to Sunday dinner.”

  Moaning, Melissa buried her face in her hands. “I’m doomed. Dad’s going to be upset with me and that will upset Mom and—and—”

  “I know,” Tori said, patting Melissa’s shoulder. “No one ever wants to upset Camille. She’s so sweet.”

  Melissa nodded. “She’s the one who convinced Dad to let me go to France. It wasn’t easy. She even stopped speaking to him for several days.”

  “I didn’t know that,” Tori said. “I wondered why Uncle Griff let you go at such a young age. But it was only supposed to be for a semester, wasn’t it?”

  “Yes, until one of the greatest jewelry designers in the world looked at my work and offered me a chance to learn from him. It was an incredible offer I had to accept.”

  “Did you make those?” Tori asked, reaching out to touch the twisted gold earrings Melissa was wearing.

  “Yes. Monsieur Jalbert is letting me design some more casual jewelry, different from the expensive, heavy pieces that you’d only wear at balls o
r galas.”

  “Of which we have none,” Russ commented. “But I have heard of the man. My wife used to buy that kind of jewelry, before she moved to Rawhide.”

  “Did you bring any other pieces with you?” Tori asked, still staring at the earrings. “I don’t know how they’re priced, but Sarah and Jennifer might be interested in carrying them in their store.”

  Sisters Sarah and Jennifer, both married to Randall cousins, owned and operated Rawhide’s popular general store. “They’d have to work out a deal with Monsieur Jalbert,” Melissa said. “What I design is his right now.”

  “Too bad. If you got my name for the Christmas gift exchange, I sure wouldn’t mind taking a pair off your hands.” She grinned at her cousin.

  “Have we drawn names already this year?”

  Russ replied, “Yeah. Your mom drew one for you. And I can tell that all the women are going to be hoping you got their name.”

  “I might make something for a Christmas present. I am already itching to get back to work.”

  “But could you work here?” Tori asked.

  Melissa answered carefully. “I can make a few gifts. But as long as I’m under contract with Monsieur Jalbert, I can’t produce any work to sell.”

  “And when does your contract expire?” she asked.

  “January first,” Melissa confessed. “But don’t mention that to Mom or Dad. They’ll think it might mean I could stay here, but—” She cut off that thought. “We’ll renew my contract as soon as I return.”

  Tori was undaunted. She continued to probe. “Why didn’t you renew before you came home?”

  Melissa looked down at her coffee, avoiding both Russ and Tori’s gaze as she said, “There wasn’t time. I decided to come home at the last minute.”

  Before anyone could comment, they were distracted by two men yelling at each other on the other side of the café. Russ, she noticed, kept a particularly watchful eye on them. The argument got heated and the men stood up, going face-to-face. When one of them picked up a knife, Russ wasted no time. He took out his cell phone and dialed 911.

  “There’s a fight at the café,” he said into his phone. “One of the men has a knife,”

  “Surely you don’t think they’re really going to fight?” Melissa asked.

  “What, they don’t have fights in France?” Russ asked.

  Melissa didn’t respond.

  “Better safe than sorry,” he stated. Almost as he spoke, one of the men threw the first punch, and in no time they were knocking chairs over as they fought. The knife fell to the floor, but not before it drew blood from its victim.

  As the diners looked on, aghast, the café door opened to admit Harry Gowan.

  The badge on his winter coat announced that he was a member of the Sheriff’s Office. His actions left no doubt, either. He waded in and stopped the fighting, though he had to take one man to the ground to get him to halt. He called the other man by name and warned him to back off. When he had them both subdued, he called the hospital to alert them that a patient was on the way.

  Russ stood. “I’d better help out.” He crossed the room, taking a bunch of napkins to press on the wound of the combatant standing. Harry welcomed his assistance, asking him to escort the man to the hospital, just down the street, while he took the other guy, now in cuffs, to jail.

  In a couple of minutes, the normal buzz of conversation was restored, as if nothing had happened.

  “Well, that was interesting!” Melissa said in amazement.

  “Now you see why everyone in town loves Harry,” Tori said. “In the old days, the deputy might’ve drawn a gun, which would endangered everyone here. But he looks for ways to intervene without that.”

  “He’s certainly impressive, but surely sometimes he has to use a gun.”

  “Yes, I suppose, but not often. First of all, everyone knows he’s a crack shot. Mike tests his men every month. Secondly, have you seen Harry’s muscles? They’re very impressive.”

  “Actually, I have. He was doing some weight lifting when I got to the station.”

  Tori’s eyebrows rose once again. “But that was in the men’s facility, right?”

  “I didn’t go in,” Melissa hastily said. “I just peeked in to see if I could spot him. And I did. He had his shirt off while he lifted weights.”

  Her cousin smiled. “And was it worth the look?”

  “Oh, yes,” Melissa said with a sigh. “Unfortunately, the guys got so perturbed that I opened the door to a ‘men’s facility,’ as they kept calling it, that I had no choice but to close it.”

  Tori laughed out loud. “Honey, if that story makes its way to your dad, you’ll never hear the end of it!”

  “He wasn’t naked.” Instead of saying it in a defensive tone, Melissa wore a small smile, making Tori think she was imagining that very picture.

  “It’s a good thing,” she said. “But I think you’ve hit on the problem you’re having with Harry.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I think you may have embarrassed him. Harry’s a very modest person.”

  “Tori, it was just his chest. If we went swimming, I’d see that much of him. That can’t be it.”

  “Maybe it’s the way you looked at him that disturbed him.”

  “I don’t know what you mean,” Melissa said nonchalantly.

  “Did you gaze at him as if you were imagining him without the shorts?”

  “I did not!” Melissa protested. But her reddening cheeks told a different story.

  Tori broke out in laughter. “Maybe you should try for more modesty when you see him at Sunday dinner.”

  “Are you sure he’ll be there?”

  “I think so. He may even be there for Thanksgiving and Christmas.”

  “Oh.” It came out more of a moan than a reply.

  As if saving her from further embarrassment, their food was delivered just then, along with Russ’s pie.

  “Will Russ come back for this?” Melissa asked.

  “If he doesn’t, I’ll get it boxed up and take it back to the office.”

  They ate in silence for several minutes, before Tori asked, “Did Camille mention her health problems to you?”

  Melissa’s head jerked up. “What are you talking about? Mom’s fine.”

  “Okay.” Tori lowered her eyes, staring at her sandwich.

  “Don’t brush me off after asking that question. What’s going on with Mom?”

  “You really ought to ask Caroline. But it appears Camille will have to have a complete hysterectomy. Apparently she’s asked them to hold off until after you’ve gone.”

  “Why does she have to have it? And who will take care of her?”

  “I don’t know the answers to those questions. Again, you need to ask Caroline.”

  “Will she tell me? Does Dad know?”

  “I’m not sure, Melissa. I’ll probably get in trouble for telling you, but I thought you should know.”

  “Of course I should!” She pushed her plate away. “I’m going to go see Caroline right now.” She reached into her purse for her wallet.

  Tori stopped her. “No, Melissa, it’s my treat. Consider it a welcome-home present. I’ve missed you.”

  “Thanks, Tori,” Melissa said, standing and bending down to kiss her cousin’s cheek. Then she rushed toward the door, anxious to find out about her mother.

  In her mind she debated the information Tori had given her. If her condition was serious, wouldn’t her mother have told her? Wouldn’t she have gone ahead and had the surgery? Why would she wait until after Christmas? It came every year. Surely she would—Maybe that was it. Maybe they’d told her there would be no more Christmases.

  Melissa started sobbing as that thought took hold. She’d been away for six years, and she’d missed all that time with her mother. But her mom wasn’t old. What was going on?

  She wasn’t even aware of the tears that streamed from her eyes. Arriving at the hospital, she reached for the door just as someone came
out. She pushed past him and was surprised when he caught her arm.

  It was Harry Gowan.

  “What’s wrong? Can I help?”

  “No. I have to find Caroline.” She tugged on her arm, but Harry didn’t let go.

  “She’s patching up the guy who got cut. You’ll have to wait a few minutes. Come in and sit down. I’ll tell them you’re here to see Caro. Is it— I mean, are you sick?”

  “No, but I need to see her at once!”

  He led her to the waiting area. “Just sit here. I’ll be right back out as soon as I talk to her.”

  Melissa wondered why he could talk to Caro and she couldn’t. Caro was her cousin, not his!

  She fixed her gaze on the door through which he had disappeared, trying to be patient, but her thoughts were bouncing off the walls of her mind.

  Harry came back out and sat down beside her on the couch. “She’s got about ten more minutes of stitching up the guy. Then she’ll be out to talk to you. I told her what you said, that you needed to speak to her.”

  He pulled out a handkerchief and started wiping her cheeks as if she were a child. Leaning closer, he said, “It won’t do me any good to mop you up if you keep crying.”

  Melissa stared at him as if she couldn’t comprehend his words.

  When he reached out to her again, she tried to pull away, but he held her in place and pressed his handkerchief to her cheeks once more.

  One of the nurses opened the door. “Harry?”

  He stood. “Come on, Melissa. Caroline’s free now.”

  Melissa followed him, so anxious to see her cousin she didn’t even think about why Harry was with her.

  Caroline turned as they entered her office. “Melissa, what’s wrong?”

  “You have to tell me! Mom—”

  “Did your mother say anything to you?” Caroline’s tone changed from a concerned cousin’s to that of a physician.

  Melissa shook her head.

  “Then I can’t discuss her case with you, not without her permission.”

  Melissa took a deep breath, gathering herself together. “Give me the phone. I’ll call her and get permission.”

  “Melissa, she didn’t want to spoil your holidays at home,” Caroline said softly.

  Melissa ignored her and dialed. As she did, she heard Harry ask Caroline, “Is she going to be okay to drive herself home? She was sobbing as she came in, and the tears haven’t stopped.”