Sweet Home Colorado (The O'Malley Men) (9 page)

“Matt? He’s a peach.”

The little girl pulled at her ear and scowled.

“Matt? A peach?” He laughed and said, “That’s an oxymoron if I
ever heard one. No, I meant Jack. Becky said he makes you wear ugly clothes and
cut your nails. Shocking. Just shocking.” He shook his head to add dramatic
emphasis.

Grace laughed at his melodrama. “Yes, he has. And I saw Becky
not more than twenty minutes ago going into Perkins Clothing and Boots.”

“She have Nick with her?”

“Yes.”

“Poor kid.”

“Poor kid?”

“Yeah, no teen would choose to buy clothes in a place that’s
been an institution for thousands of years. Especially not with his mother. He
wanted jeans from a chain store. Becky wanted quality. I was supposed to meet
him and take him shopping in Silver Springs before Becky could get hold of
him.”

The toddler started to cry and pulled her ear some more.

“How long has your little girl been doing that?” Grace
asked.

“All day. She hasn’t cried until now,” he said, retrieving his
daughter from Matt and patting her back to comfort her.

Grace felt the child’s forehead. It was warm and sweaty, and
the little girl didn’t look happy at all. “Has she had a cold or runny nose
lately?”

“How did you know?”

“She probably has an ear infection. I think you should go to
the local doctor and have her checked out.”

“I’m not taking her to Doc Jenkins! He should’ve retired years
ago. I’ll run her down to the hospital in the morning. Lucy Cochrane can take a
look at her.”

“By tomorrow she might have—”

“Might have what?”

Grace, Will and Matt hadn’t noticed that Becky and Nick had
entered the café.

Will told his wife, “Grace figures Lily’s got an ear infection
and I should get her to a doctor immediately.”

“Not that fool Jenkins!” Becky said, reiterating what half the
O’Malleys seemed to think of the town’s doctor.

“I’ll take Lily to the hospital right away,” Will said,
cradling his now-fractious daughter.

“There’s no need to upset her with a long drive to the
hospital. I can take a look at her if you like and prescribe something,” Grace
offered.

“Please!” Becky almost cried.

Grace was surprised by the panic in Becky’s voice, but given
that Nick, with his cerebral palsy, probably didn’t always enjoy good health, it
was understandable.

Grace moved over so Will could sit beside her in the booth. “Do
you have a flashlight, Matt?” she asked.

He produced a small but powerful model and Grace cooed at Lily
to settle her, then looked in her ear.

“Hoo, boy, that is one red eardrum. You’re a brave little girl,
Lily, for not making much of a fuss about it until now,” she told the child with
a smile, trying to ease any discomfort caused by a strange woman looking in her
ear. Grace distracted Lily further by letting her play with the still-lit
flashlight as she felt the glands in the child’s neck.

“She needs acetaminophen and antibiotics. I don’t have a
prescription pad, but I’m happy to come to the pharmacy with you to get those
before the infection turns really nasty.”

“Thank you,” Will said. “I feel terrible that I didn’t do
anything about it earlier. I thought she’d discovered her ear and decided it was
something she wanted to play with.”

“Perfectly reasonable,” Grace said. “We’ll have you back to
your old self in no time, won’t we, sweetie?” she asked Lily, then handed her to
her father.

“Why don’t you and I take Lily to the pharmacy, Grace,” Becky
suggested. “And Will can take Nicolas shopping for jeans in Silver Springs.” She
glowered at Nick, who glowered back. “Our son has turned into an argumentative
teenager,” she told her husband. “He absolutely refused to try on the jeans I’d
picked out for him at Perkins.”

Will slid out of the booth, allowing Grace to follow. Matt
plunked a twenty on the table and said, “You want me to come, too? I could put
on my lights and siren.”

“Very funny,” Becky said, and bustled out of the café, Grace on
her heels, leaving the men to deal with the defiant teenager.

* * *

F
RIDAY
EVENING
, G
RACE
washed and blow-dried her hair, then took a ridiculous amount
of time with her makeup—ridiculous because she was trying for a natural look and
that always seemed to take twice as long.

She was standing at the bathroom mirror, dressed only in the
longer of her new denim skirts and her bra, when the doorbell rang.

“Coming!” she cried as she hurried into the bedroom and pulled
on a camisole. Grabbing the red-and-white-checked shirt she’d chosen, Grace
raced toward the front door. Except she collided with Jack’s broad chest.

“Whoa!” He caught her arms to stop her from falling backward.
“Where are you going in such a rush?”

“To answer the door. The door you’re supposed to be waiting on
the other side of.”

“You said, ‘Come in.’”

“No. I said, ‘Coming!’”

Jack shrugged and blatantly studied her outfit. His scrutiny
made her face warm—followed by the rest of her body as his gaze fell to her bare
legs. “Door was unlocked. Sorry.”

“Damn!” Grace said as she slipped on sandals. “Mrs. C. told me
to be careful of the door. It comes off its latch, then won’t lock.”

Jack strode to the door, inspected it and said, “I’ll be back
in a second.”

Grace used the time to finish putting on her lipstick and
checking herself in the mirror. Deciding that Jack hadn’t reacted quite enough
to the skirt, she changed into the shorter one. Grace wanted his gaze lingering
on her legs. She then buttoned the shirt that was just a little too snug and
went back into the living room to find Jack on his knees, working on her door
lock. She walked right up to him, so his eyes were level with the hem of her
skirt, and said, “Everything okay?”

Jack turned and she was pleased to see him swallow. “Fine. I’ll
be done in a minute,” he said gruffly.

“Would you like a drink before we go?”

“I’m driving,” he said, and stood. “That’s done. Anything else
need fixing while I’m here?”

Grace poured two tall glasses of iced tea, then sat on the sofa
and patted the spot beside her. “We’re a few minutes early. Come sit down and
relax.”

Jack went to the kitchen faucet, where he washed and dried his
hands, before joining her. Grace handed him his drink, then clinked her glass
with his. “To old times,” she said.

Jack looked into her eyes. “What are you trying to do to me,
Grace?”

“Do?”

“You’ve changed your skirt.”

“Is it too short for tonight?” she asked, wide-eyed. She was
prepared to change if Jack thought it was too risqué for the O’Malley dinner
table, but in the meantime, she had every intention of showing Jack as much skin
as possible.

She crossed one leg over the other and leaned toward him,
waiting for his answer.

“It’s fine, Grace. I just want to know why you changed.”

“Why do you think?” she asked, placing a fingernail against his
chest.

Jack sucked in a breath, caught her hand and put his drink on
the coffee table. Then he took Grace’s glass and set it beside his. He turned to
Grace, clasped her face in his hands and kissed her.

Now this is more like it,
Grace
thought, returning the kiss as she clasped his shirtfront in her fingers and
drew him closer.

Jack broke the kiss slowly and touched his finger to the end of
her nose, saying, “That’s all for now. We’re late.” He reached for her hand and
drew her to her feet.

Grace stood, feeling slightly off balance and hoping the
evening at the ranch passed quickly, so they could return to her apartment and
continue where they’d left off.

Chapter Thirteen

“I feel strangely nervous about seeing your parents
again and meeting the rest of your family,” Grace admitted as they headed out of
town toward Two Elk.

“Don’t be. Mom can’t wait to see you. You already know my
brothers and most of my sisters-in-law. Plus, you’re already a big hit for
diagnosing Lily’s ear infection,” Jack assured her.

Still, Grace fretted most of the way. When they pulled up
outside the ranch house, the front door flew open and Sarah O’Malley rushed
outside.

Grace hopped down from the truck and was enfolded in Sarah’s
arms. “I’m so happy to see you again, Grace,” she said. “It’s been far too long.
Come on into the house.”

Relieved that Sarah held no ill will toward her for leaving
Spruce Lake, Grace reached back into the truck’s cab and retrieved the flowers
she’d brought for Sarah. “Thank you for inviting me, Mrs. O’Malley,” she said.
“I hope you can do something with these.”

“Why, thank you, dear. And you’re way too old to be calling me
Mrs. O’Malley,” she said. “It’s Sarah, and Mr. O’Malley will insist on being
called Mac.”

“There she is!” Will said, coming out into the yard. Lily was
on his hip, looking a lot happier than she had the previous day.

Before they climbed the porch steps, Grace was sure she’d been
greeted by most of the O’Malleys and met most of their children.

Her earlier nervousness soon disappeared and she felt like one
of the family again—as she had all those years ago. Only then, she hadn’t
appreciated it as much as she should’ve. Everyone made their way into the
kitchen, where the children resumed their seats to finish their supper.

“There are so many of us now, Grace,” Sarah explained. “We need
two dinner sittings. It feels like a cruise ship.” She laughed and then went to
help one of the kids.

Although she was a pediatrician, Grace didn’t always feel like
a natural around children. However, the O’Malley tribe were polite and seemed to
have good appetites. No one was whining about their meal and no one was throwing
food at anyone else. Then again, having a grandmother like Sarah, they wouldn’t
dare!

“You go on out back with the boys and watch the sunset,” Sarah
said. “Carly, Beth and I will be right with you.”

“You sure you aren’t doing too much, Mom?” Jack asked. “Will
and Matt should be doing their share of dinner patrol.”

“Lily’s finished, so Will’s putting her to bed.” Sarah dished
out plates of fruit salad and ice cream, then wiped her hands on her apron.
“Go!” She shooed Jack and Grace outside.

As she stepped onto the back porch, Grace caught her breath at
the beauty of the sunset behind the mountains. The sky glowed with pinks, reds
and oranges set against the deep blue sky higher up. She had a view of the
sunset from her apartment in town, but it was nothing compared to this.

“Come take a seat and enjoy the serenity, Grace,” Mac O’Malley
said, indicating an Adirondack chair facing the mountains.

It was a beautiful summer evening. Crickets chirruped in the
garden and farther away she could hear the occasional whinny of a horse and the
lowing of the cattle on the slopes. Between the mountain that sat so
majestically behind the property and the house was a huge lake. Grace remembered
the fall colors of the aspen groves dotted around the lake. She’d once thought
the location was heaven on earth. And if she was honest with herself, she didn’t
feel any differently now.

Jack sat down beside her and silently offered her a glass of
white wine, and she smiled at him. They’d often sat out here and just enjoyed
each other’s company in the silence of the evening.

But the calm didn’t last for long. Soon the yard was filled
with O’Malley offspring. Their evening meal finished, they were ready to expend
the last of their energy chasing one another around.

Sarah came out, a little girl perched on her hip. She handed
Matt his daughter, who seemed to gauge the relaxed mood and placed her thumb in
her mouth, closing her eyes.

The children tore around the yard like little hellions. One of
them, a girl of about ten, tackled Nicolas to the ground. “Daisy!” Luke yelled a
warning as if he was concerned his daughter could harm the much bigger boy. The
pair both sat up, laughing. “I’m fine, Uncle Luke,” Nick called.

An older girl was happy to find a vacant seat and join the
adults. Grace wondered if this was Luke’s oldest daughter, Sasha. Two younger
girls chased each other but soon tired of their game. One went to sit on Luke’s
lap, the other on Adam’s. Celeste and Maddy, Grace guessed. That would make the
toddler in Matt’s arms...Sarah! Pleased that she was managing without further
input from Jack, she glanced around and whispered to him, “Where’s Cody?”

“He’ll be here shortly,” Jack said.

Grace did a quick count of how many people lived in the ranch
house. Before, it had been just the seven O’Malleys, Mac and Sarah and their
five sons—although Luke and Matt had mostly been away at college when she and
Jack were dating.

Now Luke had a wife and five children. Surely, with Mac and
Sarah still living there, the house must be bursting at the seams. Noticing the
extension built at a right angle to the house, she asked Jack, “Who lives
there?” She whispered, not wanting to disturb the peace, but with the children’s
noise, she figured no one else would hear.

“Mom and Pop. Cody’s moved into the apartment over the barn. It
suffered smoke damage from a fire earlier this year, but my guys got the barn
rebuilt and the apartment in order a month ago. As you can probably imagine,
with four sisters, Cody loves having his own space.”

“You had a fire?”

“Long story,” he said. “No one was hurt and, thanks to Carly,
all the horses were saved.”

“I did not save all the horses!” Carly interrupted. “Just that
nasty, ornery stallion of Luke’s.” She shuddered and rubbed her cheek. “I swear
I can still feel where he kicked me.”

“Good thing Luke let him roam the range and impregnate
practically every mare out there. We’ll have some strong foals next year,” Mac
said.

Mac wasn’t known for chatting, and Grace didn’t expect any
further conversation from him. However, he seemed to want to talk. “You might
like to come out for a ride with me sometime, Grace. Like we did in the old
days.”

Grace and Jack had often ridden with Jack’s father to inspect
the fences. She’d appreciated his quiet solitude, his capable way with animals.
“I’d like that very much,” she said.

“Dinner’s ready!” Beth called from the back porch.

Since the sun had set behind the mountains now, the evening was
turning chilly, as it often did in the high country. Eating outside wasn’t an
option, except on the warmest of nights.

The adults piled inside, some washing their hands at the sink,
others disappearing to put toddlers to bed. The older children stayed outside to
play.

Jack pulled out a chair for Grace, then took the seat beside
her—just as he always had. Grace wondered how many women he’d brought home over
the years to share a meal with the family. How many other lucky women had been
made to feel a part of this large and boisterous clan?

Cody appeared and was introduced to Grace. The kid was an
O’Malley through and through. With his dark hair and eyes, he was the image of
his father and all his uncles except Jack, who shared his mother’s blue
eyes.

Food was passed around and conversation flowed. Now that it was
dark outside, various children ran through the kitchen toward the living room
and other parts of the house.

“So, Grace,” Will said as he heaped more potatoes onto his
plate, “when are you going to make an honest man outta my little brother?”

Conversation ceased and Grace could feel all eyes trained on
her. Will was the most outspoken of his brothers, so the question wasn’t
completely out of left field, just inappropriate. She could feel Jack sitting
stiffly beside her. Jack was the shiest of the brothers—even now—and she knew
he’d be dying at Will’s bluntness.

She took her time swallowing the mouthful that had become
lodged in her throat, then picked up her glass of water, took several sips, and
replaced it on the table. “I don’t know, Will. Does your brother need to be made
into an honest man?”

Mac grinned at her response and winked at her.

“He’s the only one of us who hasn’t managed to find a wife,”
Will said.

“He wouldn’t be if I hadn’t accepted that posting in this town
and had you turn up in my court!” his wife, Becky, said. “Lord knows, no one
else would be silly enough to fall for you!”

“True,” Matt said, raising his glass. “We’d have two lovesick
O’Malley bachelors if Becky hadn’t agreed to marry you in a weak moment. I still
can’t wrap my head around how easily it happened, Will.”

“It had absolutely nothing to do with him!” Becky protested.
“Nicolas wanted a father, and Will was available.”

Everyone laughed at that, except Will.

“You had that coming, little brother, for asking such a
personal question,” Luke said, and clapped him on the back as he refilled their
glasses. Then he looked right at Grace and said, “So when
will
you make an honest man of my brother, Grace?”

“Since I don’t think there’s a more honest man in the county,
your question, Will—and its follow-up, Luke—is irrelevant.” She heard the soft
exhalation of Jack’s breath beside her.

“Well said!” Sarah said. “All of you, mind your own business.
Jack and Grace’s relationship is none of your concern.”

“I’m so embarrassed,” Jack muttered, just low enough for Grace
to hear.

She turned her head slightly toward him and said, “Me,
too.”

“We can leave, if you want,” he said a little louder, for the
benefit of everyone else.

“What, and have an O’Malley man get the better of me? No way.
Besides, I’ve seen what’s for dessert and I’m not going anywhere until I’ve
eaten my fill. It’s been too many years since I’ve had a home-cooked meal.”

“’Atta girl!” Mac said, and raised his glass to her.

“You don’t cook?” Luke’s wife, Megan, asked.

“I’ve never needed to. My hus—my
ex
-husband and I dined out a lot. If we ever ate at home, it was
something from the freezer.” Grace wished she’d just kept her mouth shut.
TMI!
she scolded herself.
Soon
you’ll be telling them that apart from evenings out at too many social
functions, you and your ex rarely sat in the same room, let alone shared a
meal.

“I wish we ate out more,” Will said, fully recovered from his
mild chastisement. “My wife is a terrible cook.”

This brought gales of laughter from everyone, including
Becky.

“That’s not entirely true. She makes great salads,” Matt said,
emptying the remains of the salad bowl onto his plate.

“And beautiful children!” Beth added.

Relieved that the focus was now off her relationship with Jack,
Grace said, “Okay, tell me about Louella. I’ve been hearing all sorts of things
about her, but nothing makes much sense.”

“Which is entirely the point,” Matt said. “Louella is Will’s
best friend. If you can make any sense of why a self-respecting pig would want
to hang out with him in her spare time, then you’re a lot smarter than me.”

The evening continued in the same bantering vein and, too soon,
dessert and coffee had been served and consumed and it was time to say their
goodbyes.

Beth, Carly and Megan swapped phone numbers and email addresses
with Grace, promising to be in touch early in the week. Sarah would come by the
house on Monday. Grace and Jack were asked to join Will and Becky for dinner at
a local restaurant on Tuesday. Mac got a promise out of Grace to join him for a
ride on Wednesday. All the O’Malley women would be meeting for lunch on Thursday
and invited Grace along. She was expected for dinner again the following Friday
night and on Saturday they were all off to a rodeo in the next county. A friend
of Luke’s was bareback riding and they were going along to support him.

“I’m exhausted just thinking about the week,” Grace confided as
they drove away from the ranch.

Jack didn’t say anything for the longest time, causing Grace to
look across at him and ask, “What’s up?”

“I’m sorry about Will. And Luke.”

“Don’t be. It’s touching that they care about your
welfare.”

“Sometimes they care
too
much.”

Grace let it ride. Deep down she wished there was someone in
the world who cared half as much about her.