“Again!” Emma insisted. Then she glanced at Kat and added, “Please.”
How could I refuse? I threw that ball about a dozen more times while Kat dashed into the house to check on the food in the oven.
“Fifteen minutes until dinner,” she announced, returning to the blanket.
Emma had become distracted by a hole Roxie had dug and was in the process of filling it with leaves. I saw an opportunity to abandon the game of fetch, dropping the slimy ball in the grass and wiping my hands on my jeans.
“What’s for dinner?” I asked, settling down between Kat and Colin.
“Roasted chicken,” she answered. “With peas and biscuits. Is that okay?”
“Hell yes.” I surveyed the happy scene in the backyard. “That’s perfect.” And it was. I only wished Chris and Heather Ryan were somehow able to see this, the legacy they’d left behind.
Kathleen snuggled against me. Colin ripped out a handful of grass, became disgusted at the sight of the detached green blades and hurriedly dropped them.
“Oh, there’s some good news,” I said and told her about Jane and Kevin while the shadows of oncoming dusk approached.
Kat was delighted. “That’s amazing. I’ll have to call her tomorrow.”
I pushed a red curl out of her face. “Maybe there’s more than one wedding in the future for this family.”
“A bold assumption,” she said but she blushed and I could tell how the words had thrilled her.
“A bold prediction,” I corrected and possessively slid my arm around her body.
“Badabada!” Colin exclaimed.
“See? Even Colin agrees.”
Kat smiled. “Then maybe you’re onto something.”
I smiled back. “You’re damn right I am.”
One Year Later
“Colin, look at me. What a good boy! Emma, please smile. I promise we’re almost done.”
The kids looked adorable today and I had my heart set on catching some memorable shots of them on the gorgeous grounds of the brand new Hawk Valley Inn .
Emma kept making a face and Colin was determined to avoid standing still for an instant but I finally got them to smile at the same time while sitting on a stone bench beneath a sprawling cottonwood tree. I snapped a series of photos with my phone in a hurry.
“Can we eat now?” Emma asked.
“You just ate, sweetie. You had a bowl of strawberries.”
“I want more.”
“Me!” Colin shouted. “Me eat!” Then something else caught his interest and he scrambled down off the bench. “Doggie woof woof!” he said, determinedly toddling after a golden retriever that was obviously a service dog belonging to a woman in a wheelchair.
“No no.” I scooped him up and kissed his chubby cheek. “You come with Kat now.”
“Kat!” he said. “Katkat.”
“That’s right.”
I escorted the children back to the lobby where the inn was celebrating its grand opening. Since Nash was on the Hawk Valley Chamber of Commerce as well as a minor investor in the new place, we’d all been invited to attend the ribbon cutting ceremony.
The event was crowded. The free food and the fabulous early autumn weather had drawn everyone who had any interest in the inn. There were local politicians, business owners, educators, and just about anyone who was well known in the community.
Emma made a beeline for the food buffet and pouted when I limited her strawberry consumption but cheered up when she found some finger sandwiches.
“Baby sandwiches,” she marveled as I put several on a plate.
“Just don’t eat the toothpick in the middle,” I said.
For Colin I found a soft buttery biscuit that I planned to break up into small pieces, if I could manage to get the job done before he snatched the thing out of my hand.
Once we had some snacks I considered our seating options but there weren’t many. I spotted my mother cozied up beside Steve Brown, who happened to be her new boyfriend. She would have welcomed us but I opted to give her some privacy.
Jane and Kevin were by the inn reception desk chatting with the high school principal but there were no seats nearby. I watched as Jane laughed at something her husband said and he wrapped an arm around her, planting a kiss on top of her head. They were married this past spring. And Nash had been right about something. A year ago when he’d predicted theirs wouldn’t be the only wedding in the family.
“Where’s Nash?” Emma asked, echoing my thoughts. She was always looking for Nash. He was devoted to her. He treated Emma like a daughter. Before he’d presented me with an engagement ring he’d gone about the very solemn task of asking for Emma’s permission to marry her mother. Of course she said yes. And so did I.
“I don’t know,” I said. “Let’s go back outside.”
The three of us wound up sitting on the same stone bench where I’d posed the kids for pictures earlier. Emma primly ate the contents of her plate while I offered Colin-sized pieces of the biscuit to his hungry mouth.
“More,” he said every time he swallowed a bite. It seemed he would keep his light hair, at least through childhood. He looked a little like photos of his mother at this age. But his mischievous blue eyes were just like his big brother’s.
“Nash!” Emma abandoned her plate and took off to fling herself into the arms of her soon-to-be stepfather.
Nash had arrived outside in the middle of a conversation with several other Garner Avenue business owners but he stopped talking and crouched down to receive Emma’s hug. Damn, he was a gorgeous man in every way.
“I’ll catch you later,” he told his companions and swung Emma up, carrying her over to Colin and me.
“I was looking for you guys,” he said as he sat down next to me.
“Mommy was making us take pictures,” Emma said, scrambling out of his lap with some indignation in her face.
“Oh.” Nash nodded. “Well I’m glad because you look so pretty in your new dress, Emma.”
She looked down at her pink dress that was really more suited to the Easter season, but it had been her undoubted favorite so it was the one I bought.
“I do look pretty,” she agreed.
“You sure do,” I said, glad that my girl did not suffer any shortage of self-confidence.
“Hi-oh,” said Colin.
Nash grinned down at his brother and smoothed his hair. “Hey there, handsome.”
“Hi-oh,” Colin repeated.
Emma spotted a flowerbed about twenty feet away that she wanted to get a closer look at. Colin cried to go with her so Nash asked her to please hold his hand.
“And don’t pick any of the flowers,” I called.
“Okay, Mommy,” Emma said as she slowed her steps to accommodate Colin’s toddling.
Nash slipped his arm around me. “Hi-oh.”
I grinned. “Hi-oh.”
He kissed me. A familiar thrill rolled through my body, as it always did when he got close.
Emma and Colin were in front of the flowers now. Emma held tight to his hand like she was supposed to and pointed out the different colors. Colin seemed enthralled.
I touched Nash’s knee. “Did I tell you I got a letter from the college?”
“No. What kind of letter?”
“One congratulating me on my scholarship and saying my financial aid package was approved, which means I can register for next semester’s classes.”
How could I refuse? I threw that ball about a dozen more times while Kat dashed into the house to check on the food in the oven.
“Fifteen minutes until dinner,” she announced, returning to the blanket.
Emma had become distracted by a hole Roxie had dug and was in the process of filling it with leaves. I saw an opportunity to abandon the game of fetch, dropping the slimy ball in the grass and wiping my hands on my jeans.
“What’s for dinner?” I asked, settling down between Kat and Colin.
“Roasted chicken,” she answered. “With peas and biscuits. Is that okay?”
“Hell yes.” I surveyed the happy scene in the backyard. “That’s perfect.” And it was. I only wished Chris and Heather Ryan were somehow able to see this, the legacy they’d left behind.
Kathleen snuggled against me. Colin ripped out a handful of grass, became disgusted at the sight of the detached green blades and hurriedly dropped them.
“Oh, there’s some good news,” I said and told her about Jane and Kevin while the shadows of oncoming dusk approached.
Kat was delighted. “That’s amazing. I’ll have to call her tomorrow.”
I pushed a red curl out of her face. “Maybe there’s more than one wedding in the future for this family.”
“A bold assumption,” she said but she blushed and I could tell how the words had thrilled her.
“A bold prediction,” I corrected and possessively slid my arm around her body.
“Badabada!” Colin exclaimed.
“See? Even Colin agrees.”
Kat smiled. “Then maybe you’re onto something.”
I smiled back. “You’re damn right I am.”
One Year Later
“Colin, look at me. What a good boy! Emma, please smile. I promise we’re almost done.”
The kids looked adorable today and I had my heart set on catching some memorable shots of them on the gorgeous grounds of the brand new Hawk Valley Inn .
Emma kept making a face and Colin was determined to avoid standing still for an instant but I finally got them to smile at the same time while sitting on a stone bench beneath a sprawling cottonwood tree. I snapped a series of photos with my phone in a hurry.
“Can we eat now?” Emma asked.
“You just ate, sweetie. You had a bowl of strawberries.”
“I want more.”
“Me!” Colin shouted. “Me eat!” Then something else caught his interest and he scrambled down off the bench. “Doggie woof woof!” he said, determinedly toddling after a golden retriever that was obviously a service dog belonging to a woman in a wheelchair.
“No no.” I scooped him up and kissed his chubby cheek. “You come with Kat now.”
“Kat!” he said. “Katkat.”
“That’s right.”
I escorted the children back to the lobby where the inn was celebrating its grand opening. Since Nash was on the Hawk Valley Chamber of Commerce as well as a minor investor in the new place, we’d all been invited to attend the ribbon cutting ceremony.
The event was crowded. The free food and the fabulous early autumn weather had drawn everyone who had any interest in the inn. There were local politicians, business owners, educators, and just about anyone who was well known in the community.
Emma made a beeline for the food buffet and pouted when I limited her strawberry consumption but cheered up when she found some finger sandwiches.
“Baby sandwiches,” she marveled as I put several on a plate.
“Just don’t eat the toothpick in the middle,” I said.
For Colin I found a soft buttery biscuit that I planned to break up into small pieces, if I could manage to get the job done before he snatched the thing out of my hand.
Once we had some snacks I considered our seating options but there weren’t many. I spotted my mother cozied up beside Steve Brown, who happened to be her new boyfriend. She would have welcomed us but I opted to give her some privacy.
Jane and Kevin were by the inn reception desk chatting with the high school principal but there were no seats nearby. I watched as Jane laughed at something her husband said and he wrapped an arm around her, planting a kiss on top of her head. They were married this past spring. And Nash had been right about something. A year ago when he’d predicted theirs wouldn’t be the only wedding in the family.
“Where’s Nash?” Emma asked, echoing my thoughts. She was always looking for Nash. He was devoted to her. He treated Emma like a daughter. Before he’d presented me with an engagement ring he’d gone about the very solemn task of asking for Emma’s permission to marry her mother. Of course she said yes. And so did I.
“I don’t know,” I said. “Let’s go back outside.”
The three of us wound up sitting on the same stone bench where I’d posed the kids for pictures earlier. Emma primly ate the contents of her plate while I offered Colin-sized pieces of the biscuit to his hungry mouth.
“More,” he said every time he swallowed a bite. It seemed he would keep his light hair, at least through childhood. He looked a little like photos of his mother at this age. But his mischievous blue eyes were just like his big brother’s.
“Nash!” Emma abandoned her plate and took off to fling herself into the arms of her soon-to-be stepfather.
Nash had arrived outside in the middle of a conversation with several other Garner Avenue business owners but he stopped talking and crouched down to receive Emma’s hug. Damn, he was a gorgeous man in every way.
“I’ll catch you later,” he told his companions and swung Emma up, carrying her over to Colin and me.
“I was looking for you guys,” he said as he sat down next to me.
“Mommy was making us take pictures,” Emma said, scrambling out of his lap with some indignation in her face.
“Oh.” Nash nodded. “Well I’m glad because you look so pretty in your new dress, Emma.”
She looked down at her pink dress that was really more suited to the Easter season, but it had been her undoubted favorite so it was the one I bought.
“I do look pretty,” she agreed.
“You sure do,” I said, glad that my girl did not suffer any shortage of self-confidence.
“Hi-oh,” said Colin.
Nash grinned down at his brother and smoothed his hair. “Hey there, handsome.”
“Hi-oh,” Colin repeated.
Emma spotted a flowerbed about twenty feet away that she wanted to get a closer look at. Colin cried to go with her so Nash asked her to please hold his hand.
“And don’t pick any of the flowers,” I called.
“Okay, Mommy,” Emma said as she slowed her steps to accommodate Colin’s toddling.
Nash slipped his arm around me. “Hi-oh.”
I grinned. “Hi-oh.”
He kissed me. A familiar thrill rolled through my body, as it always did when he got close.
Emma and Colin were in front of the flowers now. Emma held tight to his hand like she was supposed to and pointed out the different colors. Colin seemed enthralled.
I touched Nash’s knee. “Did I tell you I got a letter from the college?”
“No. What kind of letter?”
“One congratulating me on my scholarship and saying my financial aid package was approved, which means I can register for next semester’s classes.”
