Chapter Twenty-Six
Retta felt as though all was right with the world on Wednesday morning, like her life was finally coming together. Her leg was healing well. She was getting around better – both on her feet and in her amazing SUV that Travis had bought for her.
Callie had been stunned when she’d told her about that on the phone. Not that Travis had bought it for her, but that she’d accepted it so graciously. She’d felt bad at first. Callie was shocked because she’d tried to do so many things for her over the years, but Retta had always fiercely defended her independence. Callie had reassured her that she wasn’t upset – just surprised.
The news about her new SUV was nothing compared to Callie’s news about her new baby boy. He was born at a very healthy eight pounds, and Callie and Kolby were head over heels in love with him. It amused Retta that they still hadn’t come up with a name for him. They’d been kicking around possibilities for months but hadn’t decided on anything. Callie had known what she wanted to name a girl, but she hadn’t heeded Retta’s notion that he would be a boy.
They didn’t know when they’d be bringing him home yet, and Retta couldn’t wait. Callie wasn’t able to have children of her own, and Retta had believed that she’d never get to be a grandma. Now, that was just one more thing to add to the list of all the wonderful changes that had taken place in her life lately. She had a whole new life with her wonderful Travis, and she could not be happier.
She checked her watch. She would be a little happier this afternoon after this meeting with Marty and the girls was over. She just wanted to get it out of the way and then, after her house sold, she’d be able to put her old life in Georgia behind her.
It’d be time to go soon. Travis had gone over to the restaurant to see Ty, but he’d said that he’d be back to collect her at eleven-thirty. It was almost that time now. She looked around the cabin; this one was almost finished. She needed to spend some time in the next one and start making her lists of what she wanted to buy. The next cabin she was going to work on – number six – was the farthest one from the house. It sat in a hollow all by itself at the very end of the dirt road that ran through the property. She was hoping that since it was so out of the way, Travis would let her drive herself out there and back. He was working on so many other projects around the place that it didn’t make sense for him to spend so much time babysitting her now that she didn’t need it anymore and she had her own transportation.
She knew that he’d been impressed when she drove him around between the cabins and the barn and the house yesterday. She was fine to drive by herself – she’d known that she would be, even if he hadn’t. He’d admitted that he’d be more comfortable than he’d expected with her driving herself around the ranch, but he was still insistent that he’d come with her today.
Whether that was more about her driving on the roads by herself or about Marty, she wasn’t sure. It didn’t matter – she wanted him with her, but she was hoping that he wouldn’t put up any arguments about her driving herself up to cabin number six by herself when they got back this afternoon.
She smiled when she saw his truck pull up outside. How could she ever complain about that big, wonderful man of hers wanting to spend time with her? She should be thanking her lucky stars that he cared so much about her – that he loved her!
He’d changed her life completely. Not just by loving her, but by helping her to see things differently. She didn’t know when or how it had happened but somewhere along the way, he’d helped her let go of the walls she’d kept up around herself for as long as she could remember. He hadn’t knocked them down or done anything overt, it was just his warmth and his love that had slowly melted her defenses and her heart.
When he came inside the cabin, he greeted her with a kiss, and she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him.
He chuckled. “Now that’s the kind of welcome I can get on board with.”
She kissed him again. “I just love you. I’m so lucky to have met you.”
He grinned. “I love you, darlin’. More than you know. Are you ready to go and get this done?”
“I am. He hasn’t called yet, so I think that means they’ll be on time.”
“I hope so.”
When they arrived at The Riverside, the parking lot was half full. Retta didn’t know what kind of vehicle they were looking for. It was a little before noon, and she hoped they wouldn’t have to wait too long.
Travis reached over and took her hand.
“You okay?”
“I am. I’ll be glad when we’re on our way back. I want to get started on number six.”
“I’ll take you up there tomorrow if you want to go.”
She made a face. “I was thinking that I could take myself this afternoon.”
“Not the first time. I’ll go with you, and we’ll scope out the path from your SUV to the door. I want to make sure you’re not going to hit any snags when you’re by yourself.”
She gave him a rueful smile. “Okay. Can we go this afternoon?”
“Tomorrow would be better, if you can wait. I need to meet a contractor at the barn – Libby’s having some work done, and I want to talk to them before they start.”
“I can wait. Oh, look – there they are.”
A big red SUV had just pulled into the parking lot, and she could see Adriana in the passenger seat.
Travis raised his eyebrows. “You ready for this?”
“Ready to get it over with.”
~ ~ ~
As Travis made his way to the passenger side to help Retta down, he watched a man and three girls climb out of the red Yukon. The girls were typical high school kids – all chatty and enthusiastic. He’d guess that the man was in his late thirties or early forties. He looked harmless enough. They gathered in front of the Yukon, and he said something to the girls. All three of them looked around, no doubt looking for Retta.
Travis lifted his hand in greeting and nodded when the man – Marty – met his gaze. Marty smiled, and the girls all huddled together chatting animatedly.
Retta grinned at him when he opened her door. “I should warn you that I think the girls just fell in love with you.”
He gave her a puzzled smile.
“They went all googly-eyed when they spotted you. I don’t blame them; I felt the same way the first time I saw you.”
He rolled his eyes at her. “They’re excited to see you. Do you want to get out?”
“I do. The girls will want hugs, and I won’t be able to do that from here.”
“Do you want your wheelchair?”
“No, I can manage.”
He lifted her out in the same way that he had so many times while she was wearing her cast. Lately, she’d been insisting that she should get in and out herself and he mostly let her. He knew damn well that picking her up like this was about him making sure that everyone knew what the deal was – that she was his. He wasn’t proud of himself, but it was just how it was.
She smiled at him through pursed lips. “Are you going to let me put my feet on the ground or are you going to hold me like this the whole time?”
He gently lowered her feet to the ground but kept one arm firmly around her waist.
“Ms. Rayne! Ms. Rayne! It’s so good to see you!” The three girls bounded over to her with the one Travis guessed was Adriana – since she’d been riding in the passenger seat – in the lead.
When she reached Retta, she stopped dead. “Are you alright? Is your leg still not better? Can I give you a hug?”
Retta laughed and held one arm out. Travis reluctantly let go of her but stayed close to her side. He watched all three girls hug her and chatter away about how they missed her and how glad they were to be able to see her, and how things wouldn’t be the same at school without her. He started to feel bad – he’d been as suspicious of them as he had of Marty, but they obviously adored Retta – he should have known that they would.
Marty approached more slowly and hung back as he watched Retta and the girls talk. He gave Travis a rueful smile and held his hand out.
“You must be Travis. I’m Marty Hoffman. Thanks for meeting us like this. The girls pleaded with me to make it happen since we were going to be so close to where Retta now lives.”
Travis shook hands with him and nodded.
“I want to apologize about …” He glanced at the girls and lowered his voice. “Jamie. She’s not taking the separation very well. She’s gone off the deep end, if I’m honest. She got this crazy notion in her head about … well, you know.”
When Marty met his gaze and held it as he said, “It’s just not true. I give you my word.” Travis was inclined to believe him. “Retta was kind to me when I started coming to watch Adriana at practices, that’s all,” Marty continued. He made a face. “Kindness is such an alien concept to Jamie that she got it into her head that there was something going on.”
Travis nodded again.
Marty blew out a sigh. “I …” He looked over at the girls. “Are we going to eat here, ladies? Or are we going to carry on to the park?”
The girls looked at each other, then at Marty. “How much farther is it?” one of them asked.
Marty looked at Travis. “I’m guessing another half an hour from here. Would that be right?”
“Yeah. It’s half an hour from here to Gardiner – and the entrance to the park.” He smiled. “There’s a whole bunch of souvenir stores down there and a couple of restaurants.”
“Can we go see the souvenir stores, Dad?”
“Yeah, can we? I want to get a hoodie.”
Marty gave Travis a rueful smile. “That sounds like a plan. Did you give Ms. Rayne her gift?”
“We did! She loves it, don’t you?”
Retta smiled and clutched a photo frame to her chest. “I do. I’ll treasure it. Thank you, girls.”
They all crowded around her once again, hugging her and promising to keep in touch and to let her know how the cheer squad was doing.
Travis watched with interest as Marty shook Retta’s hand. He didn’t look like he was hoping that he’d get a hug. He seemed a little embarrassed, but that was all.
She gave him a kind smile. “Thank you for bringing them to see me like this.”
“Thanks for agreeing to meet us – after … everything.”
Retta shrugged. “That’s not your fault.”
“I feel like I brought it down on you. Anyway, good luck to you here.” He smiled at Travis. “To both of you. Come on, girls. We need to get going if we want to have any daylight left to see the park by the time you’re done in the souvenir stores.”
Travis chuckled as he watched them go.
“That was easier than I thought,” Retta said as they waved them off.
“Yeah. I don’t think he was ever your problem.”
Her lips twitched into a smile. “I believe I may have already told you that.”
“You did – I just needed to see for myself.”
“And now you have. We can put the whole thing behind us.”
“Gladly.”
~ ~ ~
Retta smiled as she placed the team photo that the girls had given her on one of the shelves in the dining room on Thursday morning. She was glad to have it; it was a nice memory, but that was all it was. She felt as though seeing the girls yesterday had been like drawing a line under her old life.
Travis came and kissed her cheek. “You ready to go, darlin’? I’m going to drop you off and then I need to run up to town.”
“I don’t need to go – at least, not until I can go to number six.” She hadn’t pushed for him to take her when they got back from seeing the girls yesterday, but she wanted to get started on it today.
He checked his watch. “I can run you up there if you want – but if I do, you’ll be stuck until I get back. Well, you could call Ty if you need anything. I know he’s in the restaurant this morning.”
“I could drive myself so that I have my SUV if I want to come back.”
“I told you, I want to make sure that you can get in okay and …”
She made a face. “I have a key. The parking space is right by the front door at that cabin. I …”
He blew out a sigh. “And you can’t wait till this afternoon?”
“I’d rather not.”
“Alright, I’ll take you before I leave.”
She reached up to kiss him. “Thank you. I know I’m being a pain in the ass – I could take myself.”
“I’m not thrilled about leaving you out there, but I’m less thrilled about you driving out there by yourself.”
“I could follow you, that way I can come back if I need to – I won’t be stuck there.”
“Okay, let’s do that.”
She loved the drive over to number six. It felt so much more remote than the other cabins. It was tucked in at the beginning of the foothills. It felt as though it was out of sight and out of mind. You could forget that the rest of the world existed when you got there.
Travis climbed out of his truck, and she parked next to him. He waved a hand to indicate that she should wait there while he walked up the path to the front door and unlocked it. He went inside and came back out a few moments later.
He opened her door for her and smiled. “It’s all fine. The path’s flat and easy to negotiate. The inside’s dusty but not bad.” He helped her out. “I’ll see you inside and then I’ll stop playing mother hen.”
“Aww, you’re the best.”
“I’m a pain in the ass and I know it, but … once you’re back to full mobility, I’ll do better.”
Once they were inside, she looked around with a smile. “I have my work cut out for me, don’t I? You won’t need to worry about a thing. I’ll be so busy that I probably won’t have looked up by the time you get back.”
“I’ll be a few hours.”
“That’s okay.”
He looked around. “You need me to do anything?”
She laughed. “Just go.”
“Alright. I’ll be back as soon as I can. You going to wait here for me?”
“More than likely. I’ll let you know if I go home.”
He ran his hand over her hair. “I love it when you call it that – home.”
“That’s what it is to me now – want to know why?”
He chuckled. “I know already – because it’s where I am.”
She nodded happily. “Yep. But go on. I’ll see you later.”
~ ~ ~
As he drove away, Travis watched the cabin in the rearview mirror until it was out of sight. She’d be fine. He needed to relax. She’d managed by herself her whole life. She was getting around well with the boot and the crutches, he needed to let her get on with it.
He smiled. And besides, he’d managed to round the guys up this morning. It was unusual that they were all able to take an hour out at the same time and he needed to make the most of it. He loved that they already had a tradition established, and that he got to include them. He needed to find the right ring for Retta. He wasn’t going to be able to hold back from asking her to marry him for much longer. He wanted to wait until Callie and Kolby got back. He wasn’t sure that he needed everyone there when he asked, but he wanted her to be able to share the news with her daughter as soon as she had his ring on her finger – the ring that he was headed to town to find. He smiled and put his foot down.
His phone rang and he hit the button to answer. “Zeke! What’s happening?”
“I’m on the way. Should be there this afternoon. Will that work for you? I can find a hotel if …”
“No you won’t. I’m headed into town right now. Where are you; do you want to meet up?”
“You mean Livingston? I’m coming in from the other direction – I’m driving up through the park.”
“Okay. Well, give me a call when you’re getting close. If I’m not back, we’ll figure it out – get you set up with a cabin. Retta’s there, and Ty should be around.”
“No worries.” Zeke chuckled. “There’s no rush on the cabin, although I’m looking forward to meeting your Retta.”
“She’s awesome, you’ll love her.”
“No doubt. I’ll see you later.”
Travis grinned to himself as the call ended. His life just kept getting better and better. He was looking forward to having Zeke around. He was hoping he might be able to persuade him to stay for a while.