Close to Her Heart (24 page)

Round one was over and he was still standing. Eliot shouldered the diaper bag, then grabbed two suitcases, leaving Nat to carry the portable crib. As the two men followed the women toward the house, Eliot noticed Nat was walking with a slight limp.

Dani had explained that he had been recently diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, but other than the limp, Nat seemed strong and perfectly healthy.

“You ready for this?” Dani paused at the large wooden door to ask him.

“Bring it on.”

She gave him a brilliant smile, then followed her sister inside.

Eliot’s first impression of her family home was of strength and durableness. Heavy wood beams, plank flooring and an impressive river rock fireplace grounded the structure. The furnishings were practical and solid, and the paintings on the walls reflected the natural beauty of the Montana landscape. In her Seattle condo, Dani had created a world for herself that totally removed from this. Her father, Eliot knew, was the reason for that.

And it was also the reason he was interested—if also trepidatious—to meet the man. But the reality was underwhelming. Hawksley Carrigan was seated in a leather arm chair as they entered the family room en masse. He seemed reluctant to set aside his newspaper and rise to greet them. He was shorter than Eliot had expected, with a wiry build and shoulders stooped with age. His thin hair was gray, as was the two-day stubble on his face.

“You’re back,” was all he said to Dani, clasping her on the shoulder, rather than giving her a hug and a kiss. “I heard you had a baby.” But he barely glanced at the bundle in Mattie’s hands.

Eliot could tell Dani was relieved that he hadn’t taken a closer look. She’d been tensed for a reaction similar to the one she’d had from Adrian. But, it was odd that this man didn’t seem even a little interested in his new granddaughter.

“We’re naming her Beverly, Dad,” Dani said.

His eyes widened at that. If Eliot wasn’t mistaken, they even filled with tears. But all he said was, “Good. That’s a good choice.” He turned to Eliot next. “And you’re the lawyer she’s taken up with.”

He’d made him sound like a flavor of the month, but Eliot didn’t object. One day he was going to marry Dani, and this old man would know then that he was in this for the long haul. He shook the man’s hand, surprised to find a strong, vice-like grip.

In the dining room off the kitchen they found more family, sitting around a large wooden table and packaging chocolates into small copper-colored boxes.

“Hurray! You’re here. We wanted to rush out when we heard your vehicle, but we didn’t want to swarm you.” Sage was easy to identify, thanks to her red hair. She was pretty, too, but in a completely different way from Dani, or Mattie too, for that matter. She was similar to her sister, however, in the way she bee-lined to the baby. “Oh, let me hold her!”

The good-natured looking cowboy who’d been sitting next to Sage at the table, came around to shake Eliot’s hand. “Welcome to the chaos, man.”

“I take it you’re the lucky groom?” Dawson O’Dell had muscles and a strong, solid build. Eliot knew he was a former rodeo cowboy, but now worked as a county Deputy.

“Sure am. Sage finally said yes. Keep pinching myself in case it’s a dream.”

“You have to be sleeping to dream, Daddy.” A pipsqueak of a girl came up beside him, hair in braids and chocolate smeared at the corners of her mouth. “I’m Savannah. I’m the flower girl. I’m going to wear a dress, and pink cowboy boots. They’re really pretty. Want to see them?”

“How about we say hi to your Aunt Dani and the new baby first, Pumpkin?” her father suggested.

“Oh, yeah, I forgot about them.” Savannah rushed off, almost tackling Dani with the intensity of her hug.

“She loves the ranch and being part of a big family,” Dawson explained. “But she gets a little carried away at times. This wedding has her higher than a kite.”

“Dani said something about your mother coming, too? Is she here yet?”

He sighed. “Nope. Patricia will be arriving in the morning with her new boyfriend. Can’t wait to meet him,” he deadpanned.

“Not too fond of him?”

Dawson shrugged. “Never met him. He’s just one in a long string, let’s put it that way.”

“These chocolates look wonderful,” Dani said. “Can we sample?”

“Only the broken ones,” Savannah piped up. “But I’m good at breaking them, so there’s lots over here.” She pointed to where she’d been sitting.

“You have to try my sister’s chocolates,” Dani fed him one of the rich-looking morsels. “These are her famous salty caramels.”

“Coated in seventy-percent, single origin chocolate,” Sage added.

Eliot nodded, showing his approval.

“The chocolate are delicious, but have you had dinner?” Mattie asked. “We can offer pulled pork sandwiches and coleslaw.”

Dani’s eyes brightened. “Is it Grandma Brambles’ recipe?”

“Absolutely.”

Dani tucked her hand around his arm and pulled him into the kitchen. “You have to try this. It’s the best coleslaw in the world.”

He didn’t need to be convinced. He was hungry and the pulled pork sounded pretty tempting, too.

“Beer?” Dawson asked.

“Absolutely. A lager if you have one.”

“Sure thing. We’re well stocked for the weekend.” Dawson winked, as he pulled open a gigantic fridge.

Everything in this kitchen was huge, from the large island at the center, to the cast iron range and the industrial-sized dishwasher. Eliot could tell this was the room where the Carrigan girls spent the most time and felt most at home. They’d probably spent a lot of time with their mother in here.

He and Dani sat at the island to eat their meals, which were every bit as delicious as promised. When he was done, he counted heads and realized he still hadn’t met everyone. “Where’s Callan? And the twins?”

“Out in the barn doing evening chores,” Mattie said. “They should be in soon. It’s almost dark.” Turning to Dani she added, “I can’t believe Portia kept your secret for so long. The little minx.”

Along with the others, Eliot gazed out the west-facing windows. The sun had already dipped below the Gallatin Range and the mountains were glowing with a faint purple haze.

“Sure is pretty out here,” he said, thinking of the painting Dani kept in her study. Despite her complicated feelings about her father, she loved Montana and now he understood why.

“It is,” Dani said. “How about we go out to the barns and see if we can find those girls?”

Eliot nodded. It would feel good to stretch his legs. After checking with Sage and Mattie to make sure they were okay being left with Beverly for a while, he and Dani went out the back door, following a stone path that curved around the gardens and the area with the tent, beyond a bunch of shrubs and trees, to the barns and corrals. But they didn’t need to go any further, because three cowgirls were walking toward them and Eliot honestly couldn’t tell which one was Dani’s baby sister and which were Mattie’s twins. They were all wearing jeans and western shirts, dirty cowboy boots and hats. They still hadn’t spotted them and were talking quietly among themselves. The slightly taller one on the left said something and the others laughed.

And then the shortest, curviest girl glanced up in their direction, paused, and then exclaimed. “It’s them! They’re here!”

“Hey there, Portia!” Dani wrapped her niece in a big hug. “I’d like you to meet Eliot.”

“Where’s the baby?”

Eliot was getting used to that question and it made him glad. Nothing meant more to Dani than having her daughter loved unconditionally by her family.

He met the other twin, next. Wren was quieter than Portia, with thoughtful, intelligent eyes and a slimmer build, rather like her aunt. Callan was shorter than both of her nieces, with a slim, petite frame and an extremely pretty heart-shaped face. Despite her small size, she had a man-sized grip and shook Eliot’s hand before she relented and gave him a tentative hug.

“So you’re a lawyer, huh?”

“I am.”

She planted her fists on her slim hips. “And you’ve known my sister how long?”

“We’ve lived next door to each other for a few years now.” Eliot tried not to laugh. He was finally getting the grilling most guys would expect from their girlfriend’s father. This Callan was quite the tough lady. He’d do well not to cross her.

*

On the morning of Sage’s wedding, Dani was up early breastfeeding Beverly on the porch when Sage joined her. She had a cup of coffee and put another on the table for Dani.

“Decaf,” she assured her, before sitting on one of the wicker chair and leaning back with a sigh. “What a beautiful morning.”

“I’m glad. I hope everything about today is perfect for you.”

“My family is here and I get to marry the man I’ve been in love with for years, complete with the cutest little step-daughter. Anything more is just icing. And I’m talking fondant, obviously.”

Dani smiled. “At least something good came out of your barrel racing. You wouldn’t have met Dawson if dad hadn’t practically forced you to take up the sport.”

“I don’t regret it now, though I did hate it back then. Not the practising, I loved that. It was performing that made me sick.” Sage took a sip of her coffee. Her beautiful hair was wet from the shower. Later Portia was going to curl it for her. Sage had pooh-poohed the idea of a beauty salon appointment, said she’d prefer to spend a relaxing day with the family instead.

Beverly let out a little burp, and Dani pulled her up, sitting her on her knee and rubbing the baby’s back to give her stomach a chance to settle.

“She’s such a sweet baby,” Sage said. “Dani, why didn’t tell us that you were pregnant?”

“I’ve been thinking about that,” Dani admitted. “I guess it goes back to how my role in the family changed when Mom died. Mattie was already married, with children of her own. That left me in charge of you and Callan.”

“Dad certainly wasn’t much help,” Sage agreed.

“I wouldn’t say I stopped being your sister and suddenly became your mother. But I did have to step up in a lot of areas. Dad hired a housekeeper, but I made your lunches and checked that you ate breakfast and brushed your teeth. I helped with homework and looked after you when you were sick.”

“You’re right. You did so much. And none of us ever thanked you.”

Dani waved a hand. “I’m sure at the time you found me bossy and overbearing. But I didn’t enjoy being the bad guy all the time either. Plus, Dad and I butt heads a lot back then. So, by the time I’d finished high school I was pretty desperate for my freedom.”

“No wonder you left Montana. But it makes me sad that when you needed help, you didn’t feel you could call any of us.”

“I was afraid you’d tell me something I didn’t want to hear. Like, I was a fool to have a baby on my own. Or that I should go for more testing when the ultrasound tech told me my baby was showing markers for Downs.”

“Well.” Sage reached over to play with the little fingers on one of Beverly’s hands. “Just like my barrel racing days, it looks like the last nine months have paid off for you, too. Not only do you have this sweet girl, but I have to say, I really like Eliot and so does Dawson.”

“Thanks Sage. It means a lot to hear you say that.”

The sisters hugged, and when Sage pulled back she said, “Please, next time life throws you a curveball—call me?”

“I promise.”

With perfect timing, Beverly squawked, demanding more food, and after Dani moved her to the other breast she noticed a vehicle approaching from the highway.

“Oh! My flowers!” Sage jumped up from her chair and went to great the newcomer.

Dani had walked by the new SweetPea Flowers shop in Marietta a few times, since the new shop was next door to Sage’s Copper Mountain Chocolates, but she’d never met the owner. She pulled a blanket over the baby and smiled as Sage brought Risa Davison up on the porch to say hello.

Risa’s dark curly hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she was carrying an exquisite bouquet of baby yellow roses surrounding a pale, pink calla lily. “So nice to meet you, Dani. And congratulations on your new baby. Must be busy, huh?”

“Yes. But in a good way.”

“I’ll bet. May I see her?”

Beverly had unlatched from her breast, so Dani made a few quick adjustments, then pulled aside the blanket.

“Aw. She’s adorable.” Risa seemed utterly unfazed by the almond-shaped eyes that had turned toward her at the sound of her voice. “You’re so lucky.”

Dani knew that Risa had recently married former Marine, Monty Davison, and they were now living out on the Red Barn. Maybe they were hoping to start a family, too? But whether that was true, or not, the very fact that Risa would call her lucky, warmed Dani’s heart.

She did feel lucky. With each day that passed she loved her daughter more, and felt so blessed to have her in her life. And Eliot. He was the rock she’d thought she’d never find. Just seeing how easily he’d fit into her Montana family had cemented her belief in him and their budding new relationship.

They were friends, on the verge of becoming lovers. And Dani couldn’t wait. But first there was this wedding, Sage’s special day. She wanted to help make sure that everything was perfect.