Chapter Twenty-Eight
Everly bumped into Shane as she was leaving work at the end of the day. She was just about to climb into Tanner’s truck when he pulled up beside her.
“Hi, Everly. How’s it going?”
“It’s going great. I’m glad I bumped into you; I’ve been wanting to say thank you.”
He chuckled. “I’ve been wanting to thank you as well. I had a feeling that Corinne was going to abandon me once this baby comes along. I’m glad things have worked out this way.”
“Me too! I really am grateful.”
“Like I said, it’s a two-way street. Corinne’s really knocked this place into shape, and I know you worked with her before. She sings your praises.”
“I won’t let you down.”
“I know. How’s everything else? Are you and little Ashton getting settled in at the ranch?”
“We are. Everything’s going well.”
Shane laughed. “I bet they were disappointed to lose Tanner at Chico.”
“I imagine they were. I told him that he didn’t need to give it up.”
“Nah. Why would he want to spend his weekends working there when he could be at home with you and the little guy?”
She smiled. “That’s exactly what he said.”
“I’m not surprised. Anyway, I’d better let you go. Are you headed to school to pick Ashton up?”
“No. Tanner’s on school duty this week – I told him that he didn’t need to do that, either.”
Shane eyed the truck with a smile. “Let me guess, you’re in his truck, while he’s driving a ranch truck?”
“That’s right, why?”
“I reckon that he’s making a statement.”
“What kind of statement?”
“Everyone around here knows the MacFarlands. If they see Ashton being dropped off and picked up not only in a ranch truck, but also by Tanner himself, everyone will know what the deal is.”
“And what exactly is the deal? What do you mean?”
Shane chuckled. “He’s telling the whole world – or at least the whole valley – that Ashton is his. By the end of the week, even if they don’t know how it happened, they’ll all know that Tanner has a son, and that Ashton is one of the MacFarlands.”
Everly couldn’t keep the smile off her face.
Shane nodded. “I like it, too. But go on, you get on home – I need to have a word with Corinne before she leaves.”
“Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Yep, see ya.”
Everly was still smiling as she drove back down the highway toward the ranch. She slowed as she approached the driveway but checked the time and decided to carry on a little farther.
Her dad’s cabin was only five minutes down the road. Tanner had taken her and Ashton over there to see him a couple of times now. She didn’t have long, but after what Ashton had said about the bad men , she wanted to at least check in with him.
When she entered the property, she spotted Ty’s truck parked outside the restaurant building. From what Tanner had told her, they were almost ready to open for business. She drove by a couple of cabins that were closer to the road and kept on going until she reached her dad’s place. That was more out-of-the-way than the others – it suited him.
As she was climbing out of the truck, the front door opened, and her dad came out to greet her.
“Hey, Everly. Is everything okay?” he asked, looking concerned.
Her heart sank. She hated that he assumed the worst – that the only reason she’d come to see him would be if there was a problem.
“Everything’s fine. I just… I wanted to see you.”
He smiled cautiously. “You know that makes me happy, but I still feel like there must be a reason.”
She blew out a sigh. “There is. I need to know what happened on the night that you couldn’t meet me at Chico.”
He held her gaze. “I told you; I got held up.”
She raised her eyebrows.
“By some assholes who had a grudge against Cash and Mav.”
“I know, but what does held up mean?”
He shook his head. “It doesn’t matter.”
“It does. I need to know what happened to you.”
“I’m fine. It’s all over. They won’t be doing anything like that again.”
She frowned. “Because Cash took care of them , right?”
He dropped his gaze. “Yeah.”
She went to him and touched his arm. “I’m not trying to give you a hard time, Dad, I’m not. I’m worried about you, and I’ll be honest, I’m a little bit worried about Ashton, too.”
His head snapped up at that. “About Ashton? Why?”
“Because he’d love for his grandpa to pick him up from school. What worries me is what if there are more bad guys? What if you get held up while Ashton’s with you?”
“No. It wouldn’t happen.” He frowned. “But I understand why it’d worry you. I’ll tell him that I can’t do it. I’ll come over to see him at the ranch – where you know he’s safe.”
She shook her head sadly. “I’m not trying to keep you away from him.”
“No, I understand, love. It’s not worth taking the risk. I don’t expect any reprisal for what happened, but I can’t one hundred percent guarantee it. So, we play it safe.”
“Thanks, Dad.”
“Of course. Do you want to come in?”
She checked her watch. “I can’t. I’m sorry. He’ll be home from school anytime now.”
“Right. You should get a move on. Thanks for coming.”
“Thanks for being honest with me.”
“I told you, Everly, that’s how I’m going to do it with you from now on. No more excuses, even if they’re only meant to protect you. I’ll tell you the truth; that way, you can decide for yourself.”
She hesitated for a moment but then stepped forward and hugged him.
His breath hitched as he wrapped his arms around her. His voice broke as he said, “Thanks, love.”
Tears pricked her eyes as she stepped back and smiled. “Thank you. I think now that we’re here – now that we’re so close like this – we are going to be able to build something.”
He squeezed his eyes shut and swallowed visibly as he nodded. “I hope so. I’ll follow your lead.”
“I should go.”
“Yes, go on.”
She opened the truck door and looked back at him. “Soon, when we’re in the apartment, you should come over for dinner. I’d ask you now, but I don’t feel right – it’s Ford’s house as well, you know?”
He smiled. “I can wait. You guys need to get settled into your new home. And don’t forget; tell Tanner that I’m happy to be an extra pair of hands if you need one.”
“Thanks, Dad.” She bit down on her bottom lip. “Love you.”
A muscle ticked in his jaw as he nodded. “I love you, too.”
~ ~ ~
Tanner hesitated before pushing open the door to the store.
“Don’t tell me you’re having second thoughts?” Ty asked.
“Oh, hell no!” Tanner grinned at his brother and at Luke, and Kolby, who were standing just behind Ty, wearing matching puzzled smiles. “I just… Fuck! Before we go in, I just want to say thank you. I’m glad you guys are here with me. This isn’t something I imagined myself doing anytime soon, but now that I’m here… I’m glad you guys are with me.”
Luke held his gaze and nodded.
Ty laughed. “No way would I miss this. You guys came with me when it was my turn.”
“And you know my deal,” said Kolby. “I didn’t need to pick out a ring for Callie, since Ace gave it to me, but you guys were all there with me.”
Tanner nodded and entered the jewelry store. “Let’s do this.”
“What about Ford and Wade?” Luke asked. “When you talked about coming up to town this afternoon, I thought you were talking about finishing early for a beer on a Friday, like we used to. I knew that the two of them wouldn’t be up for that, but this?”
“I’ve got it covered,” said Tanner. “They’re in the office at the big house – they had some meeting, but they should be done by now.”
Kolby pulled his phone out of his pocket. “And I’m in charge of making sure that they get a say in what he chooses.”
Tanner laughed. “I’m not sure that they get a say – but they get to be part of it.”
The girl behind the counter grinned when she saw them. “Well damn, Tanner! Are you here for the reason I think you’re here? Are the rumors true?”
He grinned. “I don’t know what you’ve heard, but if the rumors are that I’m off the market, then yeah. And I’m sure after this, you won’t mind being able to confirm that it’s officially official.”
She laughed. “I won’t mind a bit. In fact, I’ll be happy to get one up on Sloane.”
Tanner wasn’t so sure about that – Sloane had done him a huge favor in the way she’d dealt with the kids. He made a mental note to shoot her husband, Billy, a quick text so that he could tell her – she considered herself the queen of all gossip, and he’d hate to deny her that after she’d been so good to him.
Ty laughed. “Good luck trying, Dakota. I reckon Sloane might already know.”
“But where are the rings?” Luke asked. “Tanner needs to choose one before anything gets to be official.”
Dakota fetched a couple of trays from the window display, and Tanner just stared at them. There were so many different kinds of rings. He liked the classic diamond solitaires, but even with those, he didn’t know if a round cut, or a square cut, or what shape might be best. Then, there were some that had two stones – he liked those, too.
“What did you have in mind?” Dakota asked.
He took his hat off and ran his hand through his hair. “Not a fucking clue.”
The others all laughed. Kolby held his phone up. “Can you guys see?”
Tanner smiled when he heard Ford and Wade. Wade was in favor of a solitaire.
“Hey,” said Ty. “I just had a text back from Cash. He just landed. Don’t choose yet, I’ll get him on video as well.”
“Are there any with three stones?” Ford asked.
Tanner raised an eyebrow at Dakota, and she went to fetch another tray.
Tanner smiled when she set the new tray in front of him. He liked the ones with three diamonds maybe best of all.
As Ty held his phone up, Tanner heard Cash say, “I like it, three stones are supposed to be past, present, and future, right, honey?”
“That’s right,” Dakota confirmed.
“I was thinking that if you choose one with three stones it’s like saying that it’s about the three of you – not just you and Everly, but Ashton as well,” said Ford.
Tanner grinned. He liked both of their reasonings. He scanned the tray. Most of the rings had one large stone flanked by two smaller ones, that didn’t seem right. His heart leapt into his chest when he spotted it. It was a wide yellow-gold band with three large oval-shaped diamonds sitting next to each other.
“That’s it – that’s the one!”
Dakota raised her eyebrows. “Are you sure?”
“Not a doubt in my mind.” He looked around at the others, wondering why she seemed so uncertain. Did he have terrible taste?
Kolby laughed. “Don’t look like that, it’s a knockout. She’s not questioning your taste; she’s questioning the size of your wallet. Three big-ass diamonds like that won’t come cheap.”
Tanner shrugged. “I don’t care.”
Dakota held the ring out to him, but Ty grabbed it first and let out a low whistle when he checked the price tag.
Tanner snatched it from him. “Give it here, squirt.”
Kolby was right about the price, but Tanner really didn’t care. It was the right ring. He could already see himself holding it up to Everly as he asked her to spend the rest of her life with him. That warm, buzzing feeling filled his chest as he pictured the ring on her hand as she ruffled Ashton’s hair and said goodnight to him.
“Hold it up so we can all see it,” called Cash.
Tanner held the ring up, and Kolby and Ty held their phones up. He had to laugh as Cash, Ford, and Wade all peered at the ring and then waved at each other. He grinned like an idiot when Cash said to Ford, “How about that? We make a good team when we work together, huh?”
It felt like they all collectively breathed a sigh of relief when Ford smiled and nodded in response and said, “It looks that way – there might be hope for us yet.”
After he’d paid and had the ring in its pretty little box stashed in his inside jacket pocket, they all climbed back into Tanner’s truck.
“Are we going for that beer now?” asked Ty.
Kolby laughed. “We need to get back to the ranch, don’t we?”
“Are we picking Ashton up from school, Tanner?” Luke asked.
“Not exactly.”
“What does that mean?” asked Ty. “I thought you were on the school run all week with him. Shay was disappointed that she didn’t get to pick him up.”
“Zeke’s picking him up this afternoon.”
Luke turned to look at him. “Does Everly know this? I thought you said that she didn’t want him doing it.”
Tanner shrugged. “She didn’t.”
“Jesus, Tanner! You might not need that ring if she finds out that you’re shirking your duties. She didn’t want Zeke picking him up because she was worried, right?”
Tanner met Ty’s gaze in the rearview mirror. “I’m not shirking my duties. Yeah, she’s worried. But she has no reason to be. There’s no one stalking Zeke – Cash made sure of that. And by the way, yes, she does know. I wouldn’t set it up behind her back. Ashton and Zeke wanted some grandson-grandpa time so bad that I suggested Zeke could pick him up, and I’d tail them. Just to put Everly’s mind at ease.”
He turned into the side street that led to the school. “So, keep an eye out for his truck. I don’t want to follow too closely – I don’t want them to spot us. I told Everly that I’d follow them, but I didn’t want Zeke to feel bad. We’ll just follow along, back to the ranch, to make sure that they get there safely.”
Luke grinned at him. “And this way everyone wins.”
Tanner nodded happily. That had been his plan. From what Cash had told him, whatever threat there had been to Zeke had been eliminated. At the same time, he knew that Everly would find it hard not to worry. This way, she didn’t need to.
“Is that him?” Luke asked when a big, black pickup truck pulled out of the school lot.
“Yeah, that’s him,” said Ty. “Let’s go!”
Tanner chuckled. “We’re not in pursuit, Ty. We’re just tailing them, remember?”
Ty laughed with him. “Right, sorry. I guess I still miss it sometimes.”
“Don’t we all?” asked Kolby.
Tanner didn’t comment. He wasn’t sure that he did miss their old life on the teams anymore. He was happy with his new life. Being a Navy SEAL had been an important part of his identity. Becoming a husband and a father was even more important to him now.
“Was Zeke coming by himself?” Luke asked as he peered through the windshield.
“Yeah, why?”
“Because I see three heads in that truck besides Zeke’s. And not a one of them is short enough to be Ashton.”
Tanner’s heart started to pound, and he put his foot down. This couldn’t be happening! No damn way was this happening.
“Hang back,” Ty growled from behind him. He leaned forward between the front seats, bringing a pair of binoculars to his eyes. “No. You’re going to have to get closer.”
“They’ll hit the highway in a minute,” said Luke. “We can run them off the road.”
Tanner remained tight-lipped. He couldn’t fucking believe this was happening. What was Ashton thinking? He had to be in the middle of the back seat, between two big men who were both wearing cowboy hats – whoever this outfit was, they were professional enough to know that they’d need to blend in.
Once they were out on the open highway, Zeke sped up, and Tanner put his foot down to stay close.
“Ram him,” urged Ty.
“No fucking way! Ashton’s in there.” Tanner could hear his heart pounding, feel the blood rushing through his head. No way would he let anything happen to that little boy.
“Give me those glasses, Ty,” said Luke.
Ty handed them over, and Luke leaned forward in his seat, using the binoculars to get a better look.
There was a fishing access coming up. Tanner was trying to calculate if he’d be able to pull alongside Zeke’s truck and force him to pull off the highway when he heard Luke laugh.
“What?” he growled. He couldn’t understand why his best friend was laughing in a moment when he felt like he might never laugh again.
Luke sat back and handed the binoculars back to Ty. “Relax, it’s all okay. We may have overreacted slightly.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?”
Luke reached over and grasped his shoulder. “Breathe, would you? It’s all okay. They haven’t been hijacked by a bunch of bad guys. I didn’t want to say it until I was sure, but I thought I recognized one of those hats. That’s Travis and Ace in the back seat, and Deacon’s in the passenger seat.”
A huge wave of relief washed over Tanner. “Thank fuck for that! Jesus, I feel like a fool, now.”
Kolby chuckled from behind them. “Hey, you weren’t on your own, and I think we can be forgiven for expecting the worst. Every single one of us has had to fight off some asshole or another who was trying to hurt the people we love.”
“True,” said Luke. “But I think Tanner was right; in his case, the threat was eliminated before it could hurt them, we just didn’t dare believe that might be true.”
“Better to be prepared for the worst than to dismiss a possible threat,” said Ty.
Tanner was only half-listening to them. He was watching Travis and Ace in the back seat. Now that he knew who they were, it was easy to tell that the two of them were chatting and laughing with Ashton, who had to be sitting between them.
As he followed them down East River Road toward the ranch, his phone rang. He hit the button on the steering wheel to answer it.
“Hey, Zeke.”
“It’s not Zeke, it’s me, Deacon, on Zeke’s phone. Are you following us by any chance?”
Tanner had to laugh. “Yeah. I didn’t know that you guys were going with him. I was in town anyway, so I swung by the school to follow them home.”
“Fair enough. We’ll see you in a few minutes.”
When they parked behind the big house, they piled out of both trucks. Tanner let the others do the explaining, all he could think about was getting to Ashton.
The little guy grinned at him as Tanner held his arms out. “Thanks for letting Grandpa come to get me. And isn’t it awesome that he brought his buddies with him? Did you know that Deacon’s the sheriff?”
Tanner nodded; he still didn’t have any words. When Ashton reached him, he scooped him up and hugged him tight. He finally felt like he could breathe properly again when Ashton wrapped his skinny little arms around his shoulders, and Tanner felt his warm breath against his neck.
“I love you, Ash.”
Ashton hugged him even tighter. “I love you, too, Dad.”