Chapter Twenty-Five
On Sunday morning, Everly finished unpacking their things while Tanner took Ashton down to the barn to see the horses. The last few days seemed to have gone by in a blur. Corinne had called her on Friday morning to tell her that she’d found what might be the perfect job for her – it was her job. Everly was thrilled for her friend that she was pregnant again. She was even more thrilled for herself that Corinne had told Shane that Everly would be the perfect person to replace her.
When she got off the phone, she’d been excited to tell Tanner the news – but it turned out that he already knew. Everly still wasn’t sure about the entire chain of events, but it seemed that Cash had something to do with Corinne deciding to bring on an assistant manager to train her up before she went off on maternity leave.
It seemed that the second Everly agreed to take the job, someone had hit the fast-forward button on her life. It was hard to believe that was only forty-eight hours ago and now here they were. She’d felt bad not being able to give Doug any notice, but he’d assured her that they’d get by. He was more interested in seeing her happy. Grady and Hannah had offered to box up her and Ashton’s belongings and mail them. It turned out that one of the estate’s pilots had been house-hunting and was eager to take over her lease on the townhouse. All the details had slotted into place before she could even worry about them.
Well, the one detail she was most concerned about was the one she wouldn’t be able to deal with until tomorrow – she needed to get Ashton into school here. Corinne had assured her that it was a great little school. Her daughter, Ruby, was happy there, and Corinne said that the staff in the office were friendly and helpful. She didn’t think there’d be a problem getting Ashton registered and settled in. Tanner’s brother, Wade, and his fiancée, Sierra, had told her the same thing when they came over to welcome them to the ranch, yesterday afternoon.
Their children, Mateo and Maya, went to the school as well. She was grateful that Ashton would have a few familiar faces around. Since there was only one class at each grade level, he’d be with Mateo and Ruby. As much as he liked that idea, the one big downside to all of this for him was that he’d left Ava behind. Everly had had to hide her tears as she and Grady and Hannah watched the two of them say a heartbreaking goodbye. They’d promised to keep in touch, and Ava’s number was now one of the many new contacts in Ashton’s phone.
She finished folding Ashton’s clothes and putting them into the dresser in his room. Then, she sat down on the end of his bed and stared out of the window at the mountains. Was this really happening? She blew out a sigh. There was no point in second-guessing herself now. They were here; she was going to do her damnedest to make sure that it turned out to be the best decision that she’d ever made.
She froze at the sound of footsteps in the hallway outside the bedroom door. As far as she knew, she was the only person in the house. She relaxed when Ford popped his head through the doorway and knocked lightly on the door.
“You doing okay in here?”
“I am. I haven’t just been sitting here on my ass the whole time, I promise. I just finished putting his clothes away.”
Ford smiled. “You can sit around all day if you want to, you know. You don’t need to justify anything. I imagine that you need a minute to catch up with yourself. This all happened kind of fast.”
She let out a short laugh. “You’re not kidding about that.”
Ford came a little closer and leaned against the doorframe. Folding his arms across his chest, he asked, “Are you okay with it all?”
She smiled. “I’m more than okay with it. I’m a little frazzled right now with trying to get a handle on all the details, but yeah. It seems a little crazy, but even more than that it feels right.”
“I’m glad to hear it, honey.”
Her smile faded. “And what about you? Do you mind… How do you feel about us being here in the house with you?” It hadn’t occurred to her until now that they weren’t just moving in with Tanner – they were moving in with Ford as well. He’d been good to her, and to Ashton, too. But having them around for a day or two was very different from having them come to live in his home.
“Like I said, I’m glad you’re here. Ashton’s great. Don’t worry about anything, okay?”
“Okay, as long as you promise to tell me if we start getting on your nerves or something.”
He smiled. “It’ll all be okay. We’ll figure it out as we go. Are you done in here? Do you want a coffee?”
“I’d love one. Tanner’s taken Ashton down to the barn; I don’t know how long they’ll be.”
“I’d guess that they’ll be a while. And the others will start arriving for lunch soon.”
In the kitchen, he poured them each a mug of coffee. “Is your dad coming to lunch?”
Everly nodded.
“Tell me to butt out if you like, but how’s that working out?”
She made a face. “It isn’t yet. I mean, I talked to him – told him that we were coming. And he’s been… He’s been great. I didn’t know how he’d react, but it seems that he and Tanner had a talk after that first disastrous episode.”
Ford smiled. “From what I understand, they’ve had more than one talk.”
She raised her eyebrows. “Anything I need to know about?”
“Only that you can relax. By the way they talk about it, it seems to me that they’re prepared to join forces to make sure that you and the little guy are going to be happy here.”
“Really? That’s not just a front they’re putting on so that I don’t worry?”
Ford chuckled. “No. I’m not sure that I’d want to be the one to tell you if that were the case, but I’m happy to tell you that it’s not. They’re both invested in seeing you and Ashton happy here.”
“How well do you know him – my dad?”
“Not that well. Obviously not as well as Cash, or Travis, or the others who served with him. But they all speak highly of him – even while admitting that he had his shortcomings in the past. Mind if I ask you what you’re worried about?”
She blew out a sigh. “You know those shortcomings? We might as well name the elephant in the room. He’s an alcoholic. He’s fallen off the wagon more times than I can count. I feel like I spent my entire childhood waiting and hoping to get to know the man who everyone else seems to love so much. I know there must be a good side to him – that it’s not just the forlorn hope of a lonely little girl – it’s just that I’m not familiar with that side of him. When it comes to him, all I’m familiar with is disappointment. And I don’t want to sound like I’m whining. I’m not that little girl anymore. I’m a grown woman with a child of my own. That’s the part that worries me. Ashton’s desperate to get to know his grandpa. Of course I want that for him. What I don’t want is for Ashton to go through the same kind of disappointment. I won’t allow it. I know how much it hurts. I won’t put him through it.”
Ford nodded slowly. “I get it. It’s going to be a difficult line to walk for you, isn’t it?”
“It is. I’d love for him to have his grandpa in his life. But…”
“But every chance you give Zeke is a chance you’re taking that Ashton will get hurt.”
“Exactly.”
“All you can do is play it by ear. I might not know him that well, but I can’t see him doing anything to hurt either of you.”
Everly took a big gulp of her coffee. “I hope you’re right.”
Ford gave her a grim smile. “I hope for his sake that I am, too. You and Ashton have already won over a lot of hearts around here. If Zeke fucks up, he’s going to face some backlash.”
Everly sighed. “And that worries me. He’s found a place where he wants to settle. The last thing I want to do is mess that up for him.”
“He’s the only one who can mess it up – and I’ll say it again; I don’t believe he will.”
~ ~ ~
By the time Tanner and Ashton made it back up to the house, most of the others had already arrived. Ashton stared at the long line of trucks parked behind the house. “That’s a lot of trucks – is one of them my grandpa’s?”
Tanner scanned the line. “No, but it’s early yet. I’m sure he’ll be here soon.” When he saw the disappointed look on the kid’s face, he decided that if Zeke didn’t show soon, he’d take a ride over to Travis’s place to get him.
He knew more about Zeke’s history with Everly now, and he felt bad for both of them. While he understood things from Zeke’s side, it broke his heart to think of Everly as a little girl waiting and hoping to see her dad, and always being disappointed.
He looked down at Ashton. He couldn’t stand to see him go through the same thing.
Fortunately, Ashton was already over his disappointment. He’d spotted Mateo and Maya, who’d just arrived with Wade and Sierra.
“Can I go and see them?”
Tanner smiled. “Of course we can, come on.”
Wade grinned at him as Ashton and Mateo greeted each other and wandered away together, with little Maya tagging along behind.
“I bet Everly’s relieved that he already has a best buddy lined up at school,” said Wade.
“She is – we both are.”
“And I hope you told her that I’m happy to take him and pick him up with our two whenever you guys need me to,” said Sierra.
Tanner had to laugh. “Thanks. I told her, just like I told her that Shayna’s happy to do the same. Kolby and Callie have offered their services, too. As have Laney and Luke, and Rocket and Spider. Ty, Janey, and Frankie, all offered themselves as backups even though they’re the least likely to be able to get away to collect him.”
Wade grinned. “Everyone wants to do what they can to help them settle in and make life easy for them – for you.”
“I know. I love it. The way it’s going, we’re all going to be fighting over who gets to go for him.” He glanced up at the porch and smiled when he saw Everly sitting with Ford. “And I forgot to mention him – Uncle Ford seems to think that he should be at the top of the list; he and Ashton hit it off from the get-go.”
Wade chuckled. “There’s a big, soft heart under that harsh exterior, you know.”
“You don’t need to tell me. I’m the one who still lives here with him, remember?”
Sierra gave him an inquiring look. He liked her, she didn’t say as much as the others, but it was worth listening whenever she did speak.
“Where do you guys plan to live? I know you made the move in a hurry, so it makes sense to stay in the big house for now, but…”
Tanner shrugged. “I’m going to have to work on it. Like you said, it all happened kind of fast. I think you know that I wasn’t exactly planning to start a family anytime soon. I need to get my shit together and figure out a place of our own.”
Sierra frowned. “You’re not thinking of leaving the ranch, are you?”
He shrugged again. “I don’t see that we have much choice. Ford made it clear that he’s happy to have us there, but we’re going to need a place of our own. And…” He chuckled. “Every dwelling on the property is already occupied. So…”
“But you’re not in a hurry, are you?” Sierra asked.
“Not a big hurry, no, but I don’t want to take too long about it, either.” He loved that Ford was being so laid back about the whole deal, but he was looking forward to the three of them having their own little home. “We’ll get around to it just as soon as we can. For now, we’re fine in the big house. To start with, it’s more important to get Ashton settled in at school, and Everly sorted out at work.”
Wade nodded. “It’ll all come together.”
Sierra smiled. “It will, and I’d love to help if I can.”
“Thanks.” She was a sweetheart. “Let’s get together, the four of us, before you leave this afternoon. I think that with the way Ashton and Mateo have taken to each other, we’re all going to be seeing a lot more of each other now.”
Sierra nodded happily. “I was going to suggest the same thing.”
Wade grinned at him, then he scanned the yard, checking on the kids. “I didn’t know Cash was coming.”
Tanner followed his gaze and laughed when he spotted Cash. “Bear said that they might stop by on their way back to home base.”
“It looks like he wants a word with you,” said Sierra. “I’m going to see what Maya’s up to; I’ll catch up with you later.”
Wade grasped Tanner’s shoulder. “You can’t leave the ranch. We need to put our heads together and see what we can do about building another cabin.”
“Thanks. I’d love the help, since you’ve done it twice already. But that’ll take a while, and I’m not sure that the three of us sharing the big house with Ford all the time is going to be ideal.”
“True, but the sooner we get started…” Wade laughed. “We can talk about this later. It looks like Cash is getting impatient.”
Tanner laughed at the sight of Cash standing with his hands on his hips, scowling at them. “I’d better go and see what he wants.”
When he reached him, Cash punched his arm. “So? How’s phase one going?”
“It’s going great. And thanks again – it wouldn’t be happening at all if it wasn’t for you.”
“You know how much I’d like admitting that I was wrong, but I was wrong about the jet. When Mav first brought it up, I argued against it. I thought it was an expense that we didn’t need. The way it’s turned out, I love being able to use it, and he’s still not…” Cash’s words trailed off, and he shrugged.
“He wanted it so that he’d be able to get back here if ever Libby needed him, right?”
“Yeah. But we all know how that’s working out.”
“I’m still keeping my fingers crossed that they’ll figure it out one day.”
“We all are.”
“He didn’t want to come with you this time?”
Cash laughed. “He didn’t want to come last time, but after what went down with Zeke, we both felt like we needed to come.”
Tanner frowned. “What exactly did go down with Zeke?”
“Fuck! Forget I said that, would ya?”
“No. I don’t think I can. I let it go at the time; I was more concerned with how Everly felt. But from your reaction…”
Cash made a face. “Zeke ran interference for us on a couple of jobs a while back. Those motherfuckers managed to track him down in Salt Lake. They were looking for payback.”
“But they didn’t get it?”
“Not exactly.”
“What does that mean? He was in one piece when he got home – he didn’t look like he’d taken a beating.”
“He didn’t. They just used him to pass a message on to us.”
“What message?”
“That they could get to him if they wanted to.”
“And can they still?”
Cash stared out at the mountains as he shook his head. “They won’t be getting to anyone anymore.”
Tanner nodded. He knew that Cash wouldn’t give him any more information than that, and he didn’t need it. All he needed to know was that Zeke no longer had a threat hanging over him.
“How’s Ford been?”
Tanner cocked an eyebrow at his brother. “You mean how’s he taking having his space invaded?”
Cash chuckled. “No. I don’t need to ask that – I can see for myself.” He jerked his chin to where Ford was sitting in one of the big rocking chairs on the porch. He had Ashton sitting on one of the arms of the chair, Mateo sitting on the other, and Maya sitting on his lap. All four of them were laughing as he rocked back and forth in the chair.
“We may have our issues, but I never had to doubt that he’d welcome Everly and the little guy into the house.”
Tanner grinned as he watched Ford with the kids. “I have to tell you that he’s surprised me just how good he is with them – both of them. Ashton loves his Uncle Ford, and if it weren’t for Ford, there’s no way that Everly and I would have figured things out as quickly as we did – or maybe even at all.”
“So I heard.”
Tanner gave him a puzzled look. “So, if that wasn’t the question, why were you asking how he’s doing?”
Cash shrugged. “He’s my next target.”
For a second, Tanner froze. There was no way that Cash could mean that the way it sounded.
Cash laughed out loud. “For fuck’s sake, Tan! Even I’m not that bad. Surely you know that I didn’t mean what you thought.”
Tanner let out a short laugh. “I hope so, but what do you mean if not that?”
Cash grinned. “I mean that now you and Everly are together; he’s the last one still single.”
Tanner couldn’t keep the note of disbelief out of his voice as he asked, “You’re not telling me that you plan to play matchmaker for him, are you?”
“I have to.”
“I don’t get it – why do you have to? The two of you don’t exactly get along.”
“I need to see all of you settled. Even Ford. It’s time to bury the hatchet. And besides, I gave him enough time to figure it out for himself, and he hasn’t made a move.”
“A move? What do you mean?”
“Are you seriously telling me that you don’t know?”
“Not a clue.”
Cash chuckled. “So, he doesn’t talk about it?”
“I don’t know! You’d have to give me a clue before I can answer that.”
“If he doesn’t talk about it, that means either he doesn’t have a clue himself, or he’s playing it close to his chest. Either way, it’s not my place to bring it out in the open – yet.”
Tanner punched at him playfully, but Cash caught his fist and chuckled. “You can get as frustrated as you like, but you know damn well I’m not going to say anything until I’m ready. And I won’t be ready until Ford is – even if I need to help him get there.”
Tanner blew out a sigh. “Fair enough. If you’re not going to explain, I’m going to go see Zeke, he just arrived.”
“Hang on, let me have a word with him first. I can’t stay all afternoon, and I need to talk to him. You can have him when I’m done.”
“Okay.”
As Cash walked away, he went over to check in with Everly, who was now talking to Laney and Callie. The way she was cooing over baby Levi who was sitting on Callie’s lap, waving his chubby little fists, made him wonder how she felt about babies, if she’d want more kids – with him.
When he reached them, he leaned in to drop a kiss on her lips.
Laney laughed. “This is so freaking cool, I never thought I’d see the day.” She reached over and tapped Everly’s arm. “Thank you.”
Everly gave her a puzzled look. “What for?”
Laney laughed again. “For being you, for being real – for being so awesome. You have no idea how much I dreaded Tanner finally meeting someone he wanted to settle down with.”
“Why?” Everly still looked puzzled, but Tanner knew exactly what his sister meant.
“Because I didn’t think whoever it was would be someone I’d get along with. Definitely not someone I’d want to hang out with like you. And the fact that you come complete with a ready-made mini cowboy just makes it all the better.”
“Thanks,” said Everly. She looked up at Tanner and laughed. “I’m just glad that we seem to fit in.”
Tanner opened his mouth to reassure her, but his sister beat him to it.
“You more than just fit in,” said Laney. “I said that first night we met you that you could be one of us, and now, here you are – one of us. Aww, look. Ashton’s one of us, too, he’s just like the rest of us – hanging around, hoping to get a word with Cash.”
Tanner followed her gaze and chuckled when he saw what she was talking about. “I think Ashton’s less enamored with Cash than the rest of us, Laney. It’s not Cash he’s waiting for – he’s waiting for Zeke, his grandpa.”
Everly turned to see what was going on. He loved the way she smiled when she saw her son sitting close to Zeke and Cash while they talked. He knew that she was still concerned that Zeke might let Ashton down, but since she’d made the decision to take the risk, she was wise enough not to try to micromanage however their relationship might develop.
He rested his hand on her shoulder. “I think they’re going to be fine, you know.”
She smiled up at him. “I think so, too.”