Chapter 15 Lane
“Do we need to make any arrangements?” Lane asked Caroline.
“No. He knew that his time was coming, probably sooner rather than later, so he had everything arranged. The only thing we had to do was to fill in the blank with the right date,” she said. “I called the funeral home, and everything is set up for tomorrow. They’ve released the obituary already.”
He was glad when everyone left for the night, and he could lay down with Taylor. Lane didn’t care that sex was off-limits. He simply enjoyed being near her and holding her. Waking up next to her, feeling her body pressed to him, was pure heaven.
The noise level in the house told him that most of his family was already up and moving. Lane checked his watch and groaned. “It’s already eight. I can’t believe we slept in so late.”
“Peopling can exhaust a person,” Taylor said. “That’s why I avoid it at all costs.”
“Good choice. Unfortunately, we need to people now.”
“I know.”
They reluctantly pulled apart. Taylor hurried into the bathroom and got dressed for the funeral which would start in two hours. Lane was already dressed when she got out. He went in to use the toilet and brush his hair.
Taylor grinned at him. “I kind of like your hair messy. It’s sexy. Besides, that’s how I’m used to seeing it.”
“Would you like it better if I put on a baseball cap?”
“Yes. Then I could play with your curls that sneak out from under your hat,” Taylor said.
“I guess you’re just going to have to wait until we get back home for that.”
Lane wasn’t surprised that the church was filled to capacity. The family took up the first three rows of pews and the rest were crammed with friends and colleagues.
“I’m pretty sure that everyone in New York is here,” Lane whispered to Taylor.
“He was a great man,” Taylor replied.
“Yes, he was, but I’m pretty sure that half of the people here just showed up to be seen.”
“Cynical much?” Willow whispered on the other side. “Although my guess is that you are right.”
The church was unbearably hot, and the service seemed to take forever. There must have been at least a hundred cars in the procession to the cemetery. Prayers were said and eulogies were given. Then, the family stood in line receiving condolences, shaking hands, or hugging everyone. Rachel kissed Lane on the mouth, smirked, and continued down the line.
Lane shook his head. I’ll be glad to be away from her.
While riding back to the mansion, Lane said, “The first thing I’m going to do is get out of this monkey suit and have a beer.”
“Beer yes. Change of clothes, no. People will be showing up for the reception.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Lane said. “Haven’t we received enough Sunday and yesterday?”
“I’m sorry,” Caroline said, patting his knee.
The rest of the day dragged on. People treated the reception as a networking event. They discussed business matters, their personal lives, and occasionally Grandpa. Finally, much to Lane’s relief, everyone was gone.
As soon as the door shut on the last guest, he and Taylor went upstairs to change into their sweats and T-shirts. They had just changed when someone knocked on the bedroom door. Colton and Willow stood in the doorway.
“We want to go home,” Willow said.
“Right now?” Lane asked.
“No, Silly. First thing in the morning,” Willow said. “I’m sure that you two have had about as much of New York as you can handle, too.”
“Yep,” Lane said.
The four of them talked to the rest of the brothers. They were ready to go home, too.
“We need to tell Mom and Dad together,” Colton said. “Otherwise, Mom might try to guilt us into staying a while longer.”
“I understand,” Caroline said, surprising them all. “I know that New York isn’t your thing. I will miss you guys. The only reason we moved here was because my dad was ready to retire from the oil business.”
They spent the rest of the evening telling stories about the family. Lane wouldn’t miss New York, but he would miss his parents.
The plane was crowded with ten people stuffed into it. Every seat was taken. Most of them slept during the entire trip. It had been a whirlwind of activity and emotions. Grandpa had been such an important of their lives and his loss had been a devastating blow.
Lane looked over at Taylor who had stared out the window the entire flight. He wondered what was going through her mind.
I will miss cuddling with her. She and I need to talk about our relationship and where it is going. I do care about her, a lot.
When they finally landed, everyone said their goodbyes and went home, probably to fall into bed and sleep for a week.
As soon as they got back, Taylor said, “I’m going to check on Diablo,” and made a beeline for the corral.
Robert greeted him with a smile.
“Congratulations,” he said.
“Why?” Lane asked suspiciously.
The older man handed him the local paper. It was folded back so that Lane could see the wedding announcement. There was a large picture that his mother must have taken of him and Taylor at the gala.
“Oh, my heavens. What has that woman done?”
“It looks like your Mama put a notice in the paper that you and Taylor were going to get married.”
“Thanks,” Lane sighed.
He went in search of Taylor. Lane stopped dead in his tracks and stared at her and Diablo. She had saddled him and was leading him to the pond.
Diablo obviously wasn’t happy about going into the water, but he followed her in as she gently tugged on the bridle. When he was knee-deep, she mounted him.
Robert and Sam joined Lane as he watched the scene unfold in front of them.
“I can’t watch this,” Sam said.
“Oh, ye of little faith,” Robert said. “She’s great with horses and he loves her.”
Diablo bucked a couple of times and then settled down.
“I figured he’d have more in him that than,” Robert said.
“She isn’t done,” Lane replied.
The three men watched as she walked the horse out of the pond, dismounted, and then tried to mount again. Diablo side-stepped. Taylor led him back into the water and mounted him again. Lane, Robert, and Sam were fascinated as she repeated the process several times. They cheered when Diablo let her mount him on dry land and ride him around the corral without bucking or rubbing her against the fence.
“You’re such a good boy,” she said, kissing his nose.
He nudged her pocket.
“He’s saying, ‘I did what you asked so you’d better give me that darn treat,’” Sam laughed.
“I think you’re right,” Robert agreed.
Taylor fed the horse bits of apple and brushed him down. At one point, Diablo put his head on her shoulder as though he was giving her a hug.
“I think that horse has a thing for her,” Robert said.
Him and me both,Lane thought.
He followed her into the barn when she put up the bridle, saddle, and blanket.
“Look at this,” he said.
“Mmm, nice picture,” Taylor said. “What happens now?”
“I don’t know,” Lane said. “I guess I could call the paper and tell them that we decided to put the engagement on hold. Or we could just let it ride. People will forget about it in a day or two. What do you want to do?”
“Play with my horse,” Taylor said. “As for the engagement announcement, I’ll go along with whatever you decide.”
“You’re no help,” he said.
“You’re welcome.”
Lane playfully made a face at her. “We need to feed the range cattle.”
They agreed that it felt good to be out doing physical labor.
“I can only handle so much of sitting around looking pretty,” Taylor said.
“But you do such a good job of it,” he said.
“I know that we just got back, but what about my ranch?” Taylor asked.
“Willow is already working on it,” Lane said.
As they threw out hay bales to hungry cattle, he wondered just how much of their affection had been for show and how much had been genuine. Lane was certain that Taylor had feelings for him, but he didn’t know how deep they were.
Talk to her,his brain said.
Soon.
After dinner, Lane headed to his office. He had six days of paperwork to catch up on and wasn’t looking forward to it.
He was almost finished for the night when he heard a loud piercing scream. Someone shouted “Fire.”
Lane rushed outside to see the horse barn engulfed in flames.