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“She has nowhere to go.” Sam shrugged. “She’s not hurting anything by staying.” Having remained under her father’s roof all these years, Sam was leery of living alone and looked forward to having a neighbor when she set up house on the property.
Matt frowned and she sensed he struggled with wanting to support her and at the same time protect her. And she loved him dearly for caring. “What about your nightmares?” he asked.
Once in a while Sam’s nightmares were so vivid she woke screaming—a silent scream her father never heard. But Matt had sensed his sister’s night terrors and had held her until she’d fallen back to sleep. As the years passed, the nightmares occurred less frequently, holding off for months at a time until Matt arrived home from the rodeo circuit.
“I haven’t had a nightmare in over a year,” she lied. Last night she’d awoken soaked in sweat and gasping for breath. “I want—” tears welled in her eyes and she brushed them away “—need this ranch.”
Matt hugged her. “Dad’s going to blow a gasket.”
“Daddy isn’t going to find out.” She hoped. “At least not right away.”
“Maybe I can talk Amy into staying at the Lazy River after we’re married. We could help—”
“No. I’m doing this on my own.”
“Where is the money coming from?”
“My trust fund.” She crinkled her nose. “Now that I’m thirty-two, I can withdraw money without Daddy’s permission. After the wedding he leaves for Europe. By the time he returns, I’ll have made significant progress and then I’ll break the news to him.”
“You’re really going to do this, aren’t you?” Matt held her gaze.
“You and Duke got your dreams—I want mine.”
“We’ll worry about you living here all alone.”
“I’m not alone.”
“That’s right, your closest neighbor is a witch.” Matt yanked her ponytail. “C’mon. We’d better head home. Duke and Renée are flying in for your birthday.”
One brother down. One to go.
WHEN SAM PULLED INTO the Lazy River ranch yard, she noticed her father’s 1959 two-door black-and-chrome Chevrolet Apache pickup parked near the house. Although Dominick Cartwright could afford any car in the world, he had a soft spot for old Chevy trucks. And right now Samantha’s nephew sat behind the wheel, pretending to drive.
Duke and Renée had adopted Timmy shortly after they’d married this past February. The little boy had been in the Detroit foster care system his entire life. Sam was thrilled he’d gotten his wish for a family and she loved playing the role of favorite aunt. After Matt married Amy, Samantha would add two nieces to her brood—Rose and Lily. As much as she loved hanging around the children, they were a painful reminder that this was as close to motherhood as she’d come.
Sam parked her truck, then headed for the old Apache.
“Happy birthday, brat,” Duke called.
“Daddy said you weren’t arriving until the wedding next week.” She bear-hugged her stepbrother, then poked her head through the truck window and planted a big, loud smooch on Timmy’s cheek.
“Gross, Aunt Sammy!” Timmy made a big production of wiping germs off his cheek.
“I didn’t want to miss your birthday,” Duke said.
Before her stepbrother had met Renée he couldn’t get far enough away from the Cartwright ranch. Sam credited Renée with softening Duke’s attitude toward children and family.
“I’m glad you’re here.” Then she added, “Maybe Renée will convince Amy to allow Daddy to invite more guests to the wedding. Amy wants to keep the reception small enough to have at the house and Daddy wants to move things to the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Tulsa.”
Duke chuckled. “Sounds like the old man.”
“Got a minute to talk?”
“Sure.” Duke opened the truck door. “Timmy, go see if Aunt Amy needs help with Rose or Lily.”
“Girls are so lame.”
“Oh, c’mon. Lily’s a cutie,” Sam said.
“Uncle Matt told me Lily poops marbles in her pants. That’s gross.” Timmy marched off, grumbling under his breath.
“Let’s take a walk.” Sam slipped her arm through Duke’s and they strolled toward the barn. “How’s life in Detroit?”
“Renée’s working with a local teacher to create a homeschooling program for the kids who end up in Santa’s Shelter when the doors open this September.”
“What’s happened to the kids you discovered hiding in your warehouse this past Christmas?” Aside from Timmy, Sam couldn’t remember their names.
“Renée’s keeping a close eye on the group. Mrs. Jensen suffered a mild heart attack a few months ago and Renée worried that she’d have to find a new home for Crystal and Evie. Crystal surprised everyone by stepping up and caring for the other children while Mrs. Jensen recovered.” Duke chuckled. “Crystal even ditched the gothic clothes and dyed her hair back to blond.”
“Wasn’t there a teenage boy in the group?”
“José. He never surfaced after running away from the Covenant House, but a few weeks ago Renée found a note in our mailbox with the words I’m okay scribbled on it.”
“From José?”
“We can’t be sure but the paper smelled like cigarette smoke and Renée was never able to convince José to quit the cigarettes.”
They stopped at the bench outside the barn and sat. “Willie’s story took an interesting turn,” Duke continued.
Sam wracked her brain but couldn’t recall a boy named Willie.
“Willie’s birth dad entered the picture and not by choice. Evidently the young man wasn’t aware that he’d gotten Willie’s mom pregnant.”
“Is he going to raise Willie?”
“Not sure. It’s a tabloid mess. Willie’s father is white and the son of Richard McDaniel, a prominent plastic surgeon in Detroit.”
“How did the story become public?”
“You’ll have to ask Renée for the details but apparently a disgruntled patient of McDaniel’s leaked the information to the press.”
“Where’s Willie now?”
Duke chuckled. “Living at the McDaniel mansion. Willie’s father is in college and his grandfather’s divorced, so the СКАЧАТЬ