Chapter 4 #2
Brad helped Hanna on with her coat, and they headed into the dark cold of a cloudless sky.
Stars twinkled overhead as they held hands and paced slowly on the path worn down around the house and nearby barn. “It was a good day.” Brad shared. “Have to admit, I’ve never seen people this invested before. Feels as if the hall is really bringing everyone together.”
“That’s what it did before,” she pointed out. “But I know what you’re saying. It feels bigger somehow now.”
Big and unruly and with a life of its own.
“What’s the special secret?” he wondered aloud.
“Valentine’s day cards,” Hanna answered instantly.
Brad stopped for a moment, cold swirling around them. “Mothers really do know everything, huh?”
“Crissy told me so I wouldn’t bother to make more with the boys unless I wanted to. Which we will—ones for her from all of us. She’s a sweetie.”
“She is. One hundred percent.” Brad tucked Hanna under his arm and resumed walking. “You ever feel as if we’re not the ones in charge around here?”
“Every minute of every day,” Hanna offered back happily. She leaned in close. “It’s like what you said earlier. People are invested, which means we don’t have to do it all alone. Not build the hall, run the training, or raise our kidlets.”
“It’s humbling,” Brad offered quietly.
“It is. And it’s love,” Hanna returned. “Love’s in charge, not us.”
A nice way to look at it. “That I can deal with.”
The snow that had swirled around them lightly during the morning ceremony of remembrance at the Stone family graveside had grown into thick fluffy flakes that coated everything as Ginny and Tucker raced for the door of Luke and Kelli’s house to join the family for supper.
Everyone else had beat them, so they had lots of room to take off coats and shake off the layer of snow that had accumulated even on the short walk between their houses.
The mudroom was full of boots and coats and a scent that had Ginny sniffing tentatively.
Smells good she thought. So far.
“I’m here to take over.” Dustin stood, reaching toward them.
Ginny went to hand him the potato salad but he waved her off.
“Not that. Her. Demi wants Uncle Dustin to be her date tonight.”
Tucker laughed. “Uncle Dustin is in for a treat. Someone is teething.”
“I’ll get her some whiskey for that—kidding.” Dustin waited patiently as Tucker took off the backpack kid carrier but stopped him before he bent to undo the rest. “I can deal with it.”
Dustin expertly undid the safety straps—not as if he hadn’t done it a million times before already, Ginny realized. He pulled out a wide-eyed Demi, who was sucking furiously on the side of her fist.
A year-and-a-half-old Demi considered for a moment then thrust out both arms. “Up”
“At your service, princess.” Dustin tilted his head toward the main room. “The guys are upstairs. The ladies are down.”
“Luke is cooking?” Tucker asked. “Good thing I brought my potato salad. I won’t starve.”
“Potluck, jerk. No one is starving with what I saw go past over the last thirty minutes.” Dustin had Demi in his arms now.
“I thought we outlawed that insult, in light of the little listening ears.”
“Joker? Jellyfish? Like one of those better?”
“I’ll think about it.” Tucker kissed Ginny almost absentmindedly then vanished with the potato salad.
Ginny watched him go with amusement.
“They should have been twins.” When she met Dustin’s gaze he jerked his head after Tucker. “Him and Luke. They both get antsy if they’re apart for more than a few minutes.”
“An exaggeration. But not much,” Ginny conceded.
She slid her feet into the slippers she’d brought, then glanced up.
Dustin was tickling Demi under her chin and making her show off two teeny tooth bumps, but his expression seemed off.
It wasn’t a delighted uncle smile, but the same one she’d spotted earlier at the graveside—thoughtful and pensive.
Made sense, considering today was the anniversary of the death of their parents.
Only… She’d also spotted that thoughtful head in the clouds look on Dustin more often over the past while. Hopefully it wasn’t something serious or something wrong with him and Charity.
She stepped toward him and leaned into his side. “Your better half ditch you for the ladies downstairs?”
“Not yet. She’s over at Fern and Cody’s for a few minutes. Fern needed help with…something…that I was forbidden to be involved in.”
“Ah, women plotting.”
“Cody is either in trouble or in for a treat.” This time the smile reached his eyes before he looked her over. Really looked her over, and a frown returned. “Are you okay?”
When he wasn’t brooding, he was too observant. Even more observant than Tucker. “I’m great. But I’m sticking with the guys right now.”
She tucked herself on his other side and joined the guys gathered in the kitchen.
Luke was cooking, or at least he was wearing kitchen mitts. As he bent and pulled out a roaster pan from the oven, the scent grew stronger. Thankfully, her mouth decided to water at the idea of roast with carrots and potatoes.
Beside him, Tucker had already moved a hot pad into position and was gathering serving bowls as easily as if they’d been at their own house.
Dustin, with Demi happily singing in his arms, had joined Uncle Frank and Ashton Stewart.
Ashton had been part of the Silver Stone family forever, and Uncle Frank had come up from the ranch in the south to join the family remembrance the past couple years.
Ginny was glad the tension between the families was no longer an issue.
To the right, Caleb leaned on the counter, a long neck beer in one hand and a dilapidated stuffed bunny toy in the other. He spoke with Walker, a mirror image to him, leaning back in that same relaxed position, their two boys playing with trucks at their feet.
Walker’s Carter was now eleven, but he hadn’t outgrown wanting to make five-year-old Tyler happy as they scooted their trucks out of the kitchen and toward the already set dining room table.
High chairs and an eclectic collection of adult chairs—twenty-one in total—circled the massive oak surface, and a knot formed in Ginny’s throat. So many people. So much family. Especially when the ladies and teenagers were summoned from the basement.
“Dinner’s ready,” Luke called. “Come and get it.”
Conversation flowed as food was passed. Babies and children added their voices to the melody that was a family gathering, and all of it was a touch of perfection.
When the dirty dishes from dinner had been stacked on the counter and pie and ice cream brought to the table, Luke rose to his feet, clicking his spoon against his glass.
He waited until the rumble of noise died down, his sharp Stone features taking in the gathered group with a hint of a smirk on his lips.
“We had tears by the graveside this morning, which was fine since a lot of them were happy tears from sharing good memories. We’ve had laughter this afternoon, and now it’s time for another thing—a celebration. ”
Caleb frowned. “What are we celebrating?”
“Another chair at the table later this year.” Luke tugged Kelli under his arm. “We’re expecting another baby mid-August.”
Cheers broke out, and laughter. Hugs and more hugs and babies being passed from one set of arms to another until Ginny was the last person to squeeze Kelli tightly.
“You good?” she whispered. Kelli’s first delivery had been traumatic to say the least.