Temptation Ridge (21 page)

“Hmm?” she asked sleepily.

He took a breath. “My brother Sean is coming. And bringing my mother.”

She lifted her head. “Wonderful,” she said, smiling, lying back down.

“It’s not wonderful,” he said miserably.

She laughed. “What’s the matter, Luke? That’s not bad news. I’d be so happy to meet your mother.”

“Yeah, but… See, she’s a little on the rigid side…”

Shelby laughed again. “Okay. Like Uncle Walt doesn’t get a little stiff? We’ll just set two more places. It could be fun. Stiff Uncle Walt and rigid… What’s your mom’s name?”

“It’s Maureen, but we’re not going to do that. We’re not getting them all together, like one big happy family. You know how I feel about stuff like that. I don’t like setting up those kind of expectations…. This isn’t… This can’t be…”

She laughed some more. “Will you please stop being so paranoid? It’s not an engagement party, it’s
Thanksgiving.
We bring together people who are important to us. You’re also bringing Art—and he certainly doesn’t complicate the whole family thing. My God, Luke. Lighten up.”

“It screws up my head, thinking about getting our
families together. Maybe you’ve accepted me the way I am, but I’m not convinced your uncle has. And I
know
my mother hasn’t.”

“But that’s not an issue. That would be their problem. We’ve been over this—I know you pretty well, despite your efforts to be my greatest mystery.”

“You do, huh? Still, this whole family thing… It’s not what I had in mind.”

“I know,” she said. “What you had in mind was picking up a girl from out of town, having her in your bed at night and far away the rest of the time, with no connection to your day-to-day life. Unfortunately, we’re from the same town right now. And we have all the same friends.”

How did she know that? he wondered. He had never explained what he’d originally hoped this would be.

“But if you’ll just relax, everything will be fine,” she said. “We’re all good friends and neighbors. Let me ask you—would your mother mind coming to our house as opposed to having a nice private turkey with you, your brother and Art?”

He was quiet a moment and then said, in a pout, “No. She’d love it.”

She giggled. “Oh, I see. You’re afraid she’s going to like me….”

“Shelby, stop it. You know what my problem is with this.”

“Well, I guess your problem is with your mother, because I certainly haven’t given you any trouble. You and I—we knew what we were getting ourselves into. I have plans, you have plans, this is temporary. Isn’t that what you said? Temporary. So. It’s just a couple of families getting together for Thanksgiving.” She grinned at him. “I like Sean. He’s cute.”

“I think he’s an ugly, stupid asshole.”

Shelby laughed at him. “There is going to be one inconvenience,” she said.

“Yeah? What’s that?”

“I’m not going to be able to spend the night with you while your mother’s here.”

He propped up on an elbow and looked at her. “You’re not?”

She shrugged. “I’m sorry. It’s a little old-fashioned, but that’s a bit too much for me. She’s your mother. I can’t stay here any more than I can bring you to my house while my Uncle Walt is down the hall. I hope you understand.”

“But Shelby, they
know
we’re…what we are.”

“Not quite the same thing,” she said. “I’m not doing it under the same roof with them. Maybe if we actually lived together, as in set up housekeeping, changed addresses, etcetera. But no—we’re a dating couple having sex. I’m not doing that with your mother in the same house.”

“If you can’t…”

“Sorry. I can’t. Out of respect. That’s just it. I won’t.”

“She’s staying five nights,” he said, running a hand along the hair that fell over her shoulder. “Five.”

“Well, I guess you’ll be some kind of maniac by the time she leaves. Maybe I can get Mel to prescribe something so you don’t go out of your mind.”

“That’s what you want?” he asked. “For us to be apart for five nights?”

“No, that’s how it’s going to be, Luke. We all have our ground rules. Now I want you to relax. It’s just dinner. It’ll be fun.”

“Sure,” he said.

There were two reasons he hadn’t been able to think of a way to explain why he couldn’t cross that line with his mother, either. He was stunned that Shelby hadn’t used the
opportunity to pull him into a more serious relationship. And, he didn’t want to sound like a wussy mama’s boy.

But, he thought, it’s not supposed to be like this. This isn’t the way women acted. She was too cool. It was almost as though she wasn’t madly in love with him. She was deliberately passing up an opportunity to trap him.

Muriel and Walt spent a whole day driving through the mountains, looking for garage sales and antique shops. He’d never in his life done anything like this. Nor had he ever cooked for a woman or helped her restore a house.

She was folding and refolding a Garberville newspaper in her hands. “Okay, there’s a barn sale up the next road about a half mile….”

“What can you possibly need from a barn sale?”

“As I’ve explained fifty times, you just never know. I once bought an incredible hundred-and-fifty-year-old pine dry sink from a barn sale.”

“Your house doesn’t seem to need more furnishings.”

“But this is what I do! Like some women drink martinis, I shop for antiques and collectibles.”

“You also drink martinis.”

She grinned at him. “I pride myself in being well rounded.”

He pulled off to the side of the road. He turned and looked at her, resting the wrist of his left arm on the steering wheel. “Muriel, have you had invitations for Thanksgiving?”

“A few,” she said.

“Are you going south for the holiday?”

“I haven’t decided,” she said. “A few friends were very thoughtful to think of me.”

“Mind if I ask? What friends?”

“No one you know, Walt.”

“Just the same…”

She took a breath. “Susan Sarandon extended an invitation to join her family. Lovely family. Love those kids. My friend George has reservations at a nice restaurant for a few friends—”

“George?”

“Not a boyfriend. Clooney, George Clooney. Very nice man. Very attached at the moment and a tad young for me. He’s dating a woman in her thirties, I could be her mother. I actually met George many years ago through his aunt Rosemary. And there was a call from an old, old friend—Ed Asner. He has a small family gathering at his house. And of course Mason would like me to join him and his fourth wife and her grown children and grandchildren.” She chuckled. “We’re so modern, aren’t we? The ex-wife is invited to dinner all the time. Of course, twenty percent of me is very appealing to her, I’m sure.” When Walt looked perplexed, she laughed. “His commission, Walt. That’s what he gets when I work.”

“Hmm. So, where are you going?” he asked.

“I’m not sure. Why?”

He was a bit uncomfortable. He looked away briefly. “We’re hosting Luke Riordan and his family. If you’d like to join us, that would be wonderful.”

“Walt?”

He turned back toward her, meeting her eyes, her smile. “What?”

“Are you hoping I’ll decline?”

“Why would you say that?”

“You wouldn’t even look me in the eye when you asked me.”

“Oh,” he said. “Sorry. It’s just that, I know you want to keep us…casual.”

“When did I say that?” she asked with a laugh.

“When you said you’d been married five times and were done with that shit. I believe that’s a direct quote.”

That amused her. She reached over and put a hand on his thigh. “Walt, it would take a lot to get me to ever consider marriage again. I’ve been through the wringer on marriages. I say ‘I do’ and there’s a cosmic explosion turning fabulous, sexy men into incorrigible animals or complete idiots. I’m cursed—I wouldn’t do that to anyone. But I’m not avoiding a good relationship. And this seems as though it’s shaping up to be a very good relationship. I’d love to join you for Thanksgiving dinner. But since we both know my limitations, I’ll be in charge of cleanup.”

His black brows lifted and he smiled. “Really?”

“Why not?”

“I’m not Susan Sarandon or George Clooney for one thing.”

“Or Ed Asner, who is
very
special to me. But you are Walt Booth, and you rank right up there. But be careful, Walt. People will think we’re serious.”

He grinned at her. “At the risk of scaring you to death, I’m very serious about you, Muriel. And a good relationship is exactly what I’m in the market for. That, and a decent dishwasher.”

W
hen Sean and Maureen arrived late Tuesday afternoon, Luke was ready for them. The house was cleaned from top to bottom and, though there was still a lot of renovation to complete, the walls were textured and painted, the floors sanded, stained and varnished and the kitchen rebuilt. His furniture was good stuff—it made the place look better. He would put his mother in his room and his brother upstairs. Since there was no furniture in the second upstairs bedroom, he’d take the couch. He had logs in the fireplace, wine chilling in the refrigerator, steaks to put on the small grill he’d purchased…and he’d told Shelby she would meet Maureen Wednesday night because he’d want a little time to visit with his mother first. That wasn’t the reason, of course. He could have asked Shelby to come over right after she finished in town on Tuesday, but that might look eager, and Maureen didn’t need any encouragement.

Much as he resented the intrusion, he was actually thrilled to see his mom. He figured in about two days he’d be less thrilled, but when she stepped out of Sean’s SUV, he beamed. Damn, she sure didn’t look sixty-one and on
both blood pressure and cholesterol medication. And you’d never take her for a woman who’d been a stay-at-home mom raising five very high-maintenance sons. She looked sophisticated even though she wore jeans, boots and a leather jacket. The thing that really melted him was his mother’s smile, her eyes. Her smile was so stunning and bright; she had large, strong, white teeth. And Luke couldn’t remember a time her green eyes hadn’t sparkled; now they crinkled just a little bit in the corners when she grinned.

“Luke! Honey!” she called, running up onto the porch and embracing him.

He held her in his arms for a long minute. “How you doing, Mom?”

“I couldn’t get here fast enough, that’s how.” She held him away from her. “You look okay. I was afraid you’d be thin and pale.”

“Now, why would I be thin and pale?” he asked. He glanced over her shoulder to see Sean struggling with multiple suitcases from the back of the SUV. “Jesus, how long are you staying?”

“Just until Sunday—but it was hard to know what to bring for a place like this.”

“So you just brought everything?”

“Funny,” she said. “So where is Art? And Shelby?”

“Shelby?” he asked.

“I heard all about her from Sean. Pretty little thing, the only niece of a general, young, great on a horse, crazy about you, etcetera…”

“Mom, she’s not here. She’s at home. I asked her to come over tomorrow night to meet you and we’ve been invited to her uncle’s house for Thanksgiving.”

“Oh,” she said, sounding disappointed. “I was looking forward to cooking for you.”

“We can do that,” he said hopefully. “I’m sure they’d understand—we don’t see each other that often.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I have plenty of time to cook and leave you leftovers. And what are we to bring to Shelby’s family for the meal?”

He frowned. It might not take two days for that excitement to wear off, after all. “Wine. I bought it.”

“We’ll have to take something else,” she said. “Pies, beans, bread, something.”

“Let me get the luggage, Mom.”

“Fine. And then show me this wonderful place.”

Luke went down the steps while his mother went directly into the house to look around. There’s one thing about having five boys with a strict father—Maureen was not to insult them by lifting a finger while they were around, except in domestic ways. They wouldn’t let her haul groceries or luggage while any of them were present. So Luke went to the back of the SUV where Sean was unloading way too many suitcases for five nights. “You’d think she was taking a fricking cruise.”

“Your death is going to be slow and painful.”

“Aw, come on! What’s up your butt now? You had plenty of time to get used to the idea. And she’s thrilled to be here, you can see that.”

“You told her all about Shelby? I didn’t even tell
you
what was going on with Shelby! Can’t you ever keep your mouth shut about anything?”

“I beg your pardon—I fly a spy plane. I have a very large security clearance. I told her about Shelby to piss you off.” He grinned. “Did I hear right? We’re going to the general’s for dinner?”

“Listen to me carefully, because if you screw this up I really will kill you. She’s young and inexperienced, not my
type, I’m too old for her and it’s not serious. Her uncle is trained in hand-to-hand combat and he doesn’t like that she likes me. It’s not the usual thing, so just keep your big mouth shut. You hear me?”

“Whew, this is making you testy,” Sean said with a smirk. “That means it’s heating up. Where’s Art?”

“In his cabin. I’ll go get him as soon as we get these bags in the house.” Luke hefted two. “Jesus, where did she think she was going?”

“She plans to be at her best for your new friends. You know, you could have avoided all this by just going to Phoenix for two days.”

“I’ve been trying to avoid you for years, but you just won’t go away,” Luke grumbled. “This was your idea and you know it. Don’t screw with me.”

Sean stiffened. “In three seconds we’ll be back twenty years, rolling in the dirt. Let’s not do this to her, huh? She really gives a shit what’s happening with you. I don’t, but she does.”

“Ach,” Luke said, hefting a couple more bags. He took them up on the porch and said, “Put her stuff in my room. You’re upstairs. I’m going for Art.” He went down the steps to the cabin next door.

Luke gave two taps and opened the door. Art was sitting on the edge of his bed, made up tidily every morning, just waiting. He was all cleaned up, his sparse hair slicked back and wearing the new pants that Luke had purchased for him. His hands were clasped in front of him and he seemed to be terrified. “Art?” Luke asked.

“Are they here now?”

“They’re here. You ready to come say hello?”

He stood up nervously and rubbed his palms down his trousers. He nodded too vigorously.

“What’s the matter? It’s just Sean and my mother. You know Sean. You got along fine. You worried about something?”

He shook his head forcefully. Luke stepped toward him. “Look, you’re shook up about something. What’s got you so upset?”

“Nothing. I had a shower. I didn’t eat sandwiches, like you said.”

Luke smiled. Art loved his bologna sandwiches. “You look great. I just wanted you to be hungry for dinner and you wouldn’t be if you filled up on sandwiches. You’ll have some steak with us.”

“Steak is hard. I had it. I don’t work the knife that good because I didn’t use it that much, and steak gets too big for my mouth. My head’s big but my mouth is small, that’s what Stan said.”

“You worried about that?” Luke asked, smiling. “I’ll help with that. You’ll work the knife fine—you do everything else with tools just fine. We’ll get the steak small enough for your mouth. By the way, I don’t buy that, that your mouth is small. I listen to you all day long, and I wouldn’t call it a small mouth. Come on, you’re the first person my mother asked about.”

“My mother’s gone now,” he said.

“I know, Art. You’ll like my mother. She’ll like you.”

“I’m not like everyone else.”

“I told her you had Down syndrome, Art. She knows all about that. We had a good friend with Down’s growing up—you’re not going to disappoint anyone. You’re perfect. She’ll like you very much.”

“You think?” he asked.

“Is that what you’re worried about? Aw, it’s going to be fine—my mother is a very nice person. To people other
than her sons, anyway. Come on, let’s get on with this so you can settle down. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you nervous. You act like you’re scared.”

“I had a shower,” he said. “And didn’t eat the sandwiches. One, I had one.”

“It’s okay.” Luke laughed. “Were you hungry? Because around here you eat when you’re hungry. You don’t get in trouble for that.”

“I know,” he said. “I know.” And he twisted his hands.

“Jesus, we better get this over with,” Luke said. “She’s not the queen of England. Calm down.”

Art moved slowly. As Luke walked to his house, he had to pause and wait for Art several times and it was not far. By the time he opened the door to his house, his mother and Sean were working their way into the wine.

“Well, hello,” Maureen said brightly. “You must be Art.”

Art stood just inside the door, looked down at the floor and nodded.

“Then come in. I’m so happy to finally meet you. I hope you’re hungry—I think we’re going to a place called Jack’s.”

Luke shot a glance at Sean and scowled. This could really screw up his plan to have his relationship with Shelby appear casual. Sean shrugged and glanced away.

“I like Jack,” Art said tremulously.

“I have steaks,” Luke said. “I thought we’d stay in.”

Maureen came out of the kitchen and went to Art. “Steaks will keep—we want to do the town. Are you a little shy, Art?” she asked him softly.

He nodded, but not quite so ferociously.

“Well, you don’t have to be shy with me, because I’ve been looking forward to meeting you. And I hear you’ve been a big help to Luke.”

Art lifted his eyes and said, “You’re not the queen of England.”

Maureen gave Luke a withering stare from narrowed eyes, something she had perfected by the time he was seven. It was that warning glance. The boys called it the “don’t fuck with me” look, but Maureen had never in her life uttered that word.

“But I almost am, Art, so I trust you to be very sweet and nice.”

He nodded.

“Of course you will,” she said. “Now, do you have a handshake or hug for Luke’s mother?”

He just stood there, uncertain. Maureen wrapped her arms around him, pulled him close and rocked him. “Ah, yes. So wonderful of you to help Luke. So wonderful to meet you.”

When she released him, he said, “My mother’s gone now.”

“Is she dead, Art?” Maureen asked gently. And he nodded. “Then I’m so sorry. And you must need a mother’s hug even more.” She grinned. “Let’s have another.” And he freed up his arms to hug her back.

Luke found himself smiling in spite of the fact that he was trying to remain insulted by the whole invasion.

The one thing that would make any man—at least a normal man—happy, was tougher than a two-dollar steak for Luke to swallow. Maureen won them over. Not just Shelby, not just Shelby’s family, the entire town. To be fair, Maureen hadn’t met every resident of Virgin River, but she’d met the crowd Luke considered to be his new friends. And she not only impressed them, she made Luke look good.

They started out with dinner at Jack’s the first night she
was in town and of course Shelby was there when they came in, so the introductions began early. Of course, why wouldn’t Shelby be there? She had nothing better to do; she hadn’t been invited to Luke’s. Her face lit up in a way that made Luke feel guilty; Sean grabbed her and hugged her like they were old friends, then made the introductions himself because he was like that—out in front, the gregarious one. The general wandered in with the famous Muriel and they all stayed for the usual gang dinner with Mel and Jack, Brie and Mike. Maureen couldn’t be kept out of the kitchen, asking Preacher and Paige a lot of questions about the operation of the bar and while doing so, holding their new baby. Luke peeked into the kitchen to see what she was up to and got the hell out of there before she started harping on the fact that she had five healthy, handsome, successful sons and no grandchildren.

Maureen had a gift for getting to know people, for putting them at ease and showing her finest qualities. For example, she kept Art near her and was often seen holding his hand, something that showed her kindness, her tenderness. She made the general laugh, endeared herself to Mel and Brie, nurtured and courted Shelby, and she was best friends with Muriel in minutes. A covert glance at the general told Luke he was close to thrilled with Luke’s gene pool.

Dinner the next night was an intimate family meal with Art and Shelby included—the steaks that had been kept waiting. It was then that Luke learned more about Shelby’s life than he had made time to ask. Shelby’s cousin Vanni’s first husband, Matt, was a fighting marine who lost his life in Baghdad; Paul was his best friend and the best man at their wedding. After Matt was gone, it was Paul who was with her for the birth of their child and, after a lot of stum
bling, finally confessed to Vanni that he’d loved her since the first moment he’d laid eyes on her—but Matt had gotten to her first. No self-respecting man invades his buddy’s territory. And now they were together, Paul parenting his best friend’s son. The romance of the story made Maureen sigh and fan at tears that gathered in her eyes.

Shelby shared other stories of the town—how Mel came to Virgin River after the violent death of her first husband, the saga of Brie and Mike, how Preacher found Paige and built a life and family he never expected to have. Maureen was enchanted by the history of Luke’s friends, history Luke hadn’t even known. Luke knew few of the details about the people who’d become his friends. Men don’t share stories in the same way women do.

Thanksgiving Day was a stellar success at the general’s house. Maureen met the rest of the family, there was a lot of laughter and the family stories that were shared were the safe kind, unlikely to ruffle any feathers. He was proud of his mother. She was a force of life, with her strong good looks, humor, compassion, energy. And there was not so much as a glimpse of her rigid side. It was obvious after getting to know her even a little bit that she was on the proper, straitlaced side, but she only judged her sons, no one else.

With a jolt, he realized—she gave him credibility. He’d been accepted well enough, but he remained a mystery to the Booth household, to the town. Known as a career soldier, single but interested in women, solitary, he presented himself as the kind of guy it wasn’t easy to get close to. Enter Maureen, and he becomes a beloved son, the kind of generous man who would take on Art, a safe man for Shelby, a normal guy from whom good things should be expected. The way he was regarded by the general and Paul took a slow but noticeable turn; they treated him like
one of the family, like someone they could trust rather than someone to be suspicious of.