Chapter 19
CHAPTER 19
S pencer had met Trinity’s parents before but never imagined he’d be standing on their doorstep on a late autumn morning just after sunrise. He’d woken up early to feed the livestock, unbox a few more packages for his new home, and swing by Bitter Cold Coffee Bar for a hot cup of coffee. When he texted Joe to inquire about the missing teddy bear, he had all the nerves associated with asking for a marriage blessing. He wasn’t sure what he expected the man to say but as he waited for the reply text to appear, his heart raced like a galloping horse.
Yep. Got him right here.
While Spencer knew Joe could drop the stuffed animal off at his daughter’s the next time he watched the kids, he didn’t want Liam to have to wait a moment more for his beloved Bubba Bear. Plus, Spencer did want to talk to Joe about something.
The man answered the door on the first knock, a big smile on his face and a ratty, well-worn bear in his hands.
“Spencer.” He jutted out his free hand for a shake. “Good to see you.”
“You too, sir.” He tipped the brim of his Stetson.
“Come in. Jennie’s just pulling some banana nut muffins from the oven, and I think one has your name on it.”
He hadn’t planned to stay, but the warm aroma and the equal amount of warmth in Joe’s invitation moved his feet forward until he found himself seated at the breakfast nook with both of Trinity’s parents, a basket of still steaming muffins arranged in the center of the round table.
“Heard you helped out with the kiddos last night,” Joe said. He’d propped up Bubba Bear in the free chair.
Spencer knew Trinity had a close relationship with her parents, but it hadn’t occurred to him that she might have already relayed the night’s events. There wasn’t much to report back on other than the missing stuffed animal, the vulnerable moment in the closet where he’d found her lost in her memories, and some cuddling on the couch while they watched her favorite rom-com classic, You’ve Got Mail, a movie he was almost embarrassed to admit he’d never seen but absolutely enjoyed.
“Not sure I was much help. Liam was out like a light before we even got to the good part in the book. He probably could have put himself to bed, truthfully.”
“Just having the extra set of hands is always helpful.” Peeling the wrapper back on a muffin, Joe angled his gaze on Spencer, bushy eyebrows drawn low over his eyes. “Not many men want to spend their Friday nights with a woman and her two energetic kids. I admire your bravery,” he chuckled.
Spencer had never really considered himself much of a ‘kid person,’ but there was something different about Trinity’s children. Maybe it was her deep love for them that made the affection contagious. He saw them through her eyes, and his overwhelming sense to protect her and her heart extended to them, too.
“They are great kids,” he said. “She’s doing an amazing job with them.”
Jennifer scooted from the table, the chair legs scraping the hand-hewn floorboards as she pushed back. “Just heard the buzzer on the washer. I’m going to rotate the laundry. Be back in a jiffy. Don’t eat all of the muffins while I’m gone.”
“No promises,” Joe teased as his wife’s hands came down on his shoulders in an affectionate squeeze before she scurried off.
Alone with Joe, Spencer suddenly felt exposed, like every thought, hope, and dream he’d had for the man’s daughter was somehow evident, somehow on display. He worried what Joe would think if he really knew the depths of his feelings for Trinity. Would he approve?
“Trinity said your place is turning out fantastic,” Joe broke through Spencer’s reverie.
“I’m pleased with it. The builders did a great job, and Trinity has been the biggest help when it comes to making the place feel like a home and not just a house.”
Was that too much to confess? If it was, Joe didn’t appear fazed.
“She really likes you, Spencer.”
A lump wedged itself in the very center of Spencer’s throat. He coughed softly into a fist. “The feeling is mutual.”
He prepared himself for the lecture. He knew it was coming. The part where Joe cautioned Spencer to be careful with his daughter’s heart. Where he reiterated all that she’d been through. Where he warned that Spencer might not be up for the task of caring for Trinity and her two children. Spencer braced himself emotionally for the impact.
“I couldn’t be more thrilled,” Joe said, popping the last bit of banana muffin into his mouth. “I really like the two of you together. You balance one another out well.”
“Oh.” Spencer couldn’t keep from uttering his surprise. “Yeah. I mean, yes. I think so, too.”
“She has so much love to give, Spencer. Always has. I think it’s why she got into the floral industry. A bouquet is basically just a bundle of affection in a vase when you think about it. Flowers express emotions that sometimes words can’t.”
He liked that sentiment. And it summed up Trinity perfectly.
“I’m not sure if Trinity has verbally expressed how much she cares for you, but as her father, I can see it. The way she talks about you. The way she’s excited for you to spend time with Liam and Mia at the farm. The fact that she’s let you get close to the kids is a big deal.”
“I know it, sir. And I don’t take it lightly.”
“Just to be clear, I didn’t invite you inside to grill you or ask you your intentions with my daughter,” Joe said making such direct eye contact Spencer began to sweat. “I just wanted the opportunity to spend some time with the man my daughter speaks so highly of. I hope this is just the beginning of many more muffin mornings.” He picked up one of the baked goods and held it in the air, waiting for Spencer to take his own and tap it toward his in a sort of toast.
Just then, Jennifer reappeared from the laundry room, right in time to catch the tail end of her husband’s words. “More muffin mornings?” Her hands went playfully to her hips, head cocked. “Are you planning on doing all the baking, Joe?”
“I can learn.” He shrugged, then winked at Spencer. “Or I can shoot on down to Faith’s bakery and pick something up. What I’m trying to say, Spencer, is that there’s always a place for you around our table because our daughter has made a place for you in her heart.”
“I should have realized that he would end up covered in dirt.”
Spencer grimaced as he watched Liam prop Bubba Bear on Doodlebug’s back again, sending him around for another lap in the miniature horse’s stall. When he’d texted Trinity after leaving her parents’, mentioning he had the missing stuffed animal in hand, he planned to drive straight to her place to pass off the bear. But apparently Trinity was already enroute to the barn as Mia had something she wanted to give to Bluebell. So Spencer doubled back and met them at the ranch, returning the stuffed animal to Liam the instant he climbed down from the car.
The boy was ecstatic, and there was no way Trinity was going to peel the bear from his hands. She’d shrugged, saying that both her son and the toy were washable, but Spencer felt bad for adding more work to her already busy schedule.
“I should have waited,” he apologized again.
“It’s really not a big deal, Spencer. Didn’t you have a stuffed animal growing up that became so worn, it was hardly recognizable? I had a little lamb and by the time I’d graduated high school, the poor thing only had one eye and hardly any stuffing left in her. Sometimes being well-loved means being a little tattered.”
They kept a watchful eye on Liam in the mini’s stall, while also observing Mia in Bluebell’s. She’d brought a little purse filled with various colored ribbons and was working meticulously to braid them into the horse’s mane. Apparently, she’d learned a new technique that she’d been practicing on her toy horses and was eager to try it out on the real thing.
“Do you have plans tonight?” Spencer moved to the haybales stacked like a staircase and patted next to him as he sat down. “If not, I’d like to take you out.”
“Like on a date?”
He bumped her shoulder with his. “If you’re okay with that.”
“I would love that,” she replied excitedly. But the hope fell from her face almost instantly. “But tonight is bible study night for my parents and they’re hosting. I don’t think I can ask them to watch the kids.”
Spencer knew that he typically told her to bring them along, but he was actually hoping for some one-on-one time with Trinity. “It’s okay. We can reschedule.”
“I need to broaden my babysitting roster.”
Just then, a very familiar voice called out from the barn’s big double-wide doors. “Did someone say they were in need of a babysitter?”
Nana Jo sauntered into the barn wearing her Wranglers, tan canvas coat, and a big grin. If Spencer didn’t know any better, she looked ready for a ride.
“I was just telling Spencer that I need to find a few more people to watch the kiddos so I don’t always have to rely on Mom and Dad.”
“You know, I have been known to babysit a child or two in my day.”
“Oh, no.” Trinity shook her head. “I wasn’t implying?—”
“You weren’t, but I am. Seriously, let me watch them. They can hang out with me and do the evening farm chores.”
Trinity looked between Spencer and his grandmother for some sort of protest, but she wasn’t going to get any from him. Nana Jo had been the best babysitter, his favorite person to spend time with when his parents couldn’t. Sometimes, even when they could.
“But you’ve got the B&B and your guests,” Trinity offered as an excuse.
“We’re really light on bookings this weekend. Only have two guests, and they’re quiet and keep to themselves. Not like the bachelorettes we had last week. Goodness, those gals were a hoot.”
Once more, Trinity looked to Spencer, then back at Josephine. “Are you sure?”
“As sure as a well-trained horse on a clear trail.”
“Okay.” She clapped her hands to her thighs. “I will take you up on the offer then.”
“Hear that, kiddos?” Nana Jo hollered, swinging her gaze around the barn to land on Liam and Mia and the horses they were doting on. “You get to spend the evening with me!”
“Yay!” they both sang in unison.
“Homemade pizzas sound yummy?”
“Yes!” the two cheered.
“We can even make some cookies for the horses.”
“Cookies for the horses?” Liam snickered and Doodlebug whinnied in response. “Horses don’t eat cookies!”
“Sure, they do. You make ‘em with oats and molasses. Sometimes I even throw in some crushed peppermints. They gobble them right up.”
Mia poked her head out of Bluebell’s stall, her face stunned. “Horses like peppermints?”
“Yup. You should see them at Christmastime. Candy canes all around.”
Spencer watched Trinity take in the scene, the way she hung on every word her children uttered. The way her eyes glistened, and how her hand unconsciously went to her heart as if she needed to hold it or it might burst. If love was a look, this was it. And when she brought her attention back to Spencer at her side on the haybale and her expression didn’t fall or falter, but only grew into a full-fledged smile, he felt like the luckiest man in the world to be on the receiving end of her affection.
And it was a feeling he promised never to take for granted.