Chapter 12
The sound of a car driving up caught Miranda’s attention and she smiled. Had to be her parents. She walked out of her home, into the bright sunshine, and met her parents’ car in the driveway.
Her mom, Betty, stepped out of the rental car and shut the door, her flowy multi-colored caftan ruffling in the breeze. Richard, her father, climbed out at the same time.
Miranda went to her mom and hugged her, the familiar scent of jasmine flowing over her. “Hi, Mom.”
Betty leaned back and took Miranda by the shoulders and gave her a once over. “You look good.” She gave a big sigh. “I dare say you’d look even better at home where you belong.”
Miranda tried not to laugh at her mother’s predictability. “So glad you’re here.” She turned to her father, who had just reached them. “Hello, Dad.”
“How’s my one and only girl?” Richard enveloped her in a big hug. “You wear Arizona well.”
“I’m doing well.” She stepped back and looked from Richard to Betty. “I’ve missed you both so much.”
“Then it’s time to come home,” Betty stated.
“I am home.” Miranda swept her arm out to encompass her house, corrals, and barn. “This is where I belong now.”
Betty looked around her silently before resting her gaze on the mobile home. “That’s where you live?” Her tone was disapproving.
Miranda tried not to bristle. There was nothing wrong with living in a mobile home, but she didn’t want to go into that. “It’s temporary, until my house is built.” She gestured to the location where the construction workers would start on her new home. “They’ve been delayed on another project, so mine won’t get started for another month.”
“I’d like to see the blueprints.” Richard loved architecture, and even if this was just a house, he’d enjoy looking things over.
“It doesn’t look like it will be very big.” Betty looked skeptically at the spot. “Is the floorplan nice?”
“It’s bigger than it looks from here.” Miranda held back a sigh. “I’ll show you the floorplan of my new home, which will be perfect for me.” She smiled brightly. “Come on in.”
Betty and Richard joined Miranda as she walked to the front door of her current home. She opened the door and let her parents in before following them and shutting the door. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust from the brightness of the outside to the dim interior.
“Have a seat at the breakfast table.” She liked the brightness of the kitchen over the darker living room. “I have orange and apple juice, lemonade, and iced tea.”
“Orange juice,” her dad said as she’d expected.
Her mom was harder to predict. “Lemonade would be perfect,” Betty said. “It’s warm outside.”
“You’ve got it.” Miranda ducked into the fridge and grabbed the carton of orange juice and pitcher of pink lemonade. Her lemonade wasn’t fresh squeezed like Kit’s had been, but it wasn’t bad.
After Miranda had poured the drinks, including lemonade for herself, she carried them to the small table where her parents sat. She set the drinks down, then took the only remaining chair at the table since it seated three.
“Looks like a nice little town,” Richard said. “Pretty small considering you aren’t far from the Phoenix area.”
“Traffic was terrible.” Betty gave a dramatic sigh. They’d flown into Sky Harbor Airport, which was a high-traffic location.
“It does get busy there.” Miranda looked from her mom to her dad. “I like the smallness of King Creek. I just hope it is many years before Phoenix sprawls out any farther. Justin thinks it’ll be a long while.”
“Who is Justin?” Betty spoke sharply.
Miranda swallowed. She didn’t want to explain her personal relationship with him—not yet. “He owns one of the ranches around here. I work with his daughter, Kaycee. She got thrown from a stallion and has a fear of getting on a horse again. She’s making good progress, so hopefully it won’t be long before she’s back in the saddle.”
Betty looked slightly appeased that Miranda had been talking about one of her client’s parents, and not someone she was dating. “Do you have many clients?”
“I am currently booked up for the next two months.” Miranda couldn’t help a smile. “So yes, I have plenty of clients.”
“Sounds like you’re doing well here.” Richard set down his empty orange juice glass.
Betty frowned at Richard. Clearly, she didn’t want Miranda to get too used to being here.
“When are you returning to Texas?” Betty asked. “You certainly can’t like it here better than home. Your family and friends are there, not here.”
There it was, faster than Miranda had expected.
She didn’t want to get into it with her parents, especially her mom. “Why don’t you two move here? I’d love to have you closer.”
Betty sniffed. “All of our friends are back in Texas, where you belong.”
“I’ve found a few things we can do while you’re here.” Miranda looked at her dad, who loved nature and gardens. “The Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix is supposed to be incredible.”
“I’ve heard of it.” Richard nodded. “I’m looking forward to it.”
“The Phoenix area has a lot of restaurants.” Miranda looked to her mom, who loved fine dining. “One in particular in North Scottsdale came highly recommended. We can go there tomorrow night after we visit the gardens.”
Miranda went on, “Thursday is the barbeque special night at the King Creek Corral, a local restaurant. I thought that would be a good place to eat tonight and you can enjoy the local color, and I know how you love barbeque, Dad.”
They were also meeting Justin there. She had a pretty good idea how that would go over—as in not go over well at all. But she had to get her parents used to the idea of her dating men, of which she hoped would begin and end with Justin. This would be the first test.
Out of the frying pan and into the fire.
Justin swallowed a drink of Coke as he waited at the bar of the King Creek Corral, known to locals simply as the Corral. He had a view of the front door and wanted to make sure he spotted Miranda and her folks before they were seated.
He cracked open a peanut shell from a small tin bucket on the bar top, then tossed the shells onto the sawdust and peanut shell-covered floor, as was expected of patrons.
From the time he’d started dating as a teenager, he’d never had a problem winning over parents. He had a feeling that things weren’t going to be so easy with Miranda’s mom and dad. If they were set on her getting back with her ex, it was going to be a tough sell to get them to accept him as their daughter’s man. Boyfriend and girlfriend seemed too juvenile when it came to him and Miranda. She was his woman and he was her man.
Miranda walked through the front door, followed by a woman with her dark hair in a knot on top of her head, and a thickset man who looked like he’d gone prematurely gray.
Justin slid off his barstool, leaving his Coke behind. He walked over the sawdust-covered floor to Miranda, who gave him a nervous smile when he reached them.
“Mom, Dad.” She caught her parents’ attention. “This is Justin McLeod. He’s having dinner with us.” She turned to Justin. “This is my mom, Betty, and my dad, Richard.”
Betty looked startled, then like she was holding back a frown. Instead she gave a tightlipped smile as he took her hand and gave it a firm but gentle grip. “A pleasure, Mrs. Hawthorne.”
“Mr. McLeod,” she said before removing her hand from his.
“Justin, please.” He smiled.
She gave a slight nod. “You may call me Betty.” She sounded like it was all she could do to be polite.
He extended his hand to Richard. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Hawthorne.”
“Call me Richard.” He gripped Justin’s hand hard enough to crack his knuckles.
Justin resisted shaking his hand out after Richard released it.
He moved closer to Miranda to let her parents know he wasn’t intimidated but refrained from kissing her or putting his arm around her. He didn’t want her to feel uncomfortable—or more uncomfortable than she already was.
“The hostess is ready to seat us.” Miranda looked brightly to each one of them, an act that seemed a little forced.
They waited for Betty and Richard to go first. Justin followed with Miranda, resting his hand lightly on her lower back.
She looked over her shoulder and mouthed, “Sorry.”
He smiled and winked.
She smiled in return.
After the two women were seated in the booth, Richard slid in next to his wife, and Justin moved in beside Miranda.
Betty’s expression remained frigid, cold coming off her in waves. Richard looked appraisingly at Justin, as if examining him up, down, and inside out.
The server showed up immediately following the hostess’s exit. She took their drink orders with a promise to return for their meal choices.
Everyone turned their attention to their menus. The loud chatter around the restaurant and the country music kept at bay what would have been absolute silence. Justin didn’t feel the need to attempt to break the ice with Miranda’s parents. He’d let her keep control of the conversation and their interactions. Justin intended to be himself.
The server arrived with their drinks and took their dinner orders before retreating.
Justin drank from his large iced tea mug and waited.
Miranda broke the silence. “I mentioned to you earlier that Justin’s daughter is my client.”
Betty raised a brow. “I see. You are dating a client’s parent.”
“Miranda is excellent at her job,” Justin said. “Kaycee will be back on a horse in no time. I can see her itching to. With your daughter’s help, it will be soon.”
“I’ve seen her in action,” Richard said. “She’s great with kids.”
Betty sniffed.
“I understand you’re a Cowboy’s fan,” Justin said to Richard. “Last year was a good year for Dallas.”
Richard nodded. “Are you a fan?”
“Arizona Cardinals.” Justin relaxed in his seat. “Been a huge fan since I was a kid.”
“You must have been young.” Richard seemed to be warming up.
“I was born in 1988, the year they came to Arizona as the Phoenix Cardinals.” Justin brought up the game between the Cowboys and the Cardinals last fall. Richard obviously loved his Cowboys, which had won the last matchup.
Miranda spoke with her mom, who was clearly still uptight. Justin heard Miranda say something about shopping at the Scottsdale Quarter and Kierland Commons, and her mom’s icy demeanor melted a little. Not much, but some.
The server arrived with a helper and their BBQ dinners were set before them, along with a basket of cornbread squares and ramekins with honey butter. Both Richard and Justin dug in to the cornbread, their conversation moving on to fishing.
Justin wanted to include Betty, but it was clear she had no interest in anything they talked about, or in talking with Justin, period. He was truly at a loss as to how to connect with Betty. She wasn’t like any of the moms he’d met in the past.
There had to be some way to chip away her icy shell, but right now he wasn’t seeing it.
Richard, on the other hand, was easy to talk with. When they got onto the topic of traveling around the U.S., and the places they’d both been to, that cemented the foundation Justin was working to build with Miranda’s father.
He was having a hard time liking Miranda’s mom, who gave him condescending looks when she looked at him at all. But he had to remember that her parents wanted her back with a man they thought was the perfect match for their daughter.
If they only knew.
What Justin did know, was he’d kick Craig’s ass if he ever came near Miranda and tried to hurt her. No way was that ever happening again to the woman he loved.
After they finished their BBQ meals, they ordered two peach cobblers with vanilla ice cream. Betty barely ate any of the one she ate with Richard, but Miranda ate her share of the one between her and Justin. He liked that she wasn’t shy about eating in front of him. Some of his past dates had ordered salads and picked at their food.
During dessert, Justin discussed historical events with Richard. He seemed particularly interested in World War II, his father—Miranda’s grandfather—having served in it. Her grandfather had been a pilot, his plane shot down during the war, and he hadn’t made it home.
Dinner wound down with Betty claiming to have a headache and that she wanted to get back to the bed and breakfast to relax. They walked outside to the parking lot, then to the Hawthorne’s rental car. They had given Miranda a ride to the restaurant, and Justin told Richard he’d be happy to drop her off at her house on his way home.
Betty gave a brief nod when Justin told her good night, then a quick hug to Miranda. She strode to the passenger side door and slid in. Richard’s handshake with Justin was hearty this time rather than crushing like before. Miranda hugged her dad and he climbed into the car with his wife.
Miranda stood at Justin’s side and waved to her parents as they drove away. When her parents’ car was out of sight, Justin brought Miranda into his arms and kissed her like he’d been wanting to do all night long.
He loved her sweet taste and the way she kissed him like she couldn’t get enough of him. When they parted, she let out a big sigh.
“You okay?” he asked.
She groaned. “That was utterly painful.”
“The kiss or dinner with your folks?” he teased.
Miranda playfully slapped at his arm. “Dinner with my mom and dad, of course.” She took his hand and they strolled to his truck. “Although you and Dad did seem to hit it off.”
“Your dad is great,” Justin said. “I’m sure your mom is, too.”
“I hope you see that side of her before they go back to Texas.” Miranda shook her head. “But unless I tell her what happened in my marriage, I don’t think that will happen. And telling my parents will be really hard to do.”
“Do you think you will tell them?” Justin asked as they reached his vehicle.
“I have to if I want them to understand and let it all go.” She leaned her forehead against Justin’s chest. “I can’t tell you how difficult this will be.”
He rubbed her back with one hand while holding her close with his other. “Do it whenever you’re ready. Don’t feel pressured by me.”
She tipped her head back and met his gaze. “Thank you for not pushing me. But also, thank you for encouraging me to do it. I should have long ago.”
He wrapped a ringlet of her hair around his finger. “You ready to go home?”
She nodded. “It’s been a long day. I think I’ll take a bubble bath then tumble into bed.” She covered her mouth and yawned. “Tomorrow I’m taking them to the Desert Botanical Garden and out to dinner in North Scottsdale.”
Justin kissed Miranda again, then helped her into the truck before getting in on the driver’s side. He drove her home and walked her to her front door.
“Didn’t you promise to let me help you with your next bubble bath?” he asked as he smiled down at her.
“No, but I’ll take a raincheck.” She reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck, bringing him down to her. “Soon,” she whispered in his ear.
The way she said it made him hard as hell. Damn, but he’d enjoy helping her with that bubble bath now. But she was tired and needed some time alone after the dinner that must have been stressful for her.
“Thanks for inviting me to dinner.” He brushed loose hair away from her face. “I know it wasn’t easy for you and I’m grateful you care enough to do it.”
“I do care,” she said quietly. “I care for you more than I ever expected to.”
He smiled. “I knew from the moment I met you that you’re someone special. You’re even more so now that I’ve gotten to know you, Miranda. You mean a lot to me.”
Her smile seemed hesitant, and he wondered why. “You’re a wonderful man, Justin McLeod.”
He ran his finger along Miranda’s nose to the tip. “Now don’t you forget you said that. I’m gonna hold you to it.”
She smiled. “Don’t worry. I won’t forget.”
He kissed her softly then waited for her to go into her home before he turned away and made it to his truck. He looked over his shoulder and she waved before closing her door.
As he drove home, Justin’s mind turned over and over the fact that he’d fallen hard for one Miranda Hawthorne.