Chapter Nineteen
After yesterday’s darkness, the sunlight streaming through the curtains was a welcome apology from Mother Nature. From where Eloise sat comfortably perched on the living room sofa, the blue skies and chirping birds were a delight to see. It didn’t hurt any that neither Sadieville, nor the restaurant had suffered any damage due to those winds. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she had visions of the entire town having been blown away like Dorothy’s farm house in the Wizard of Oz.
“How’s it feeling?” Aunt Eileen appeared with a hot cup of coffee and a fresh bag of ice.
“Like I lost a fight with a belt sander.” She accepted the mug gratefully, then setting it to one side, gingerly readjusted the fresh ice pack on her leg. The angry scrape beneath it served as proof that yesterday hadn’t been some dust-induced nightmare.
“Once it scabs over,” Aunt Eileen retrieved the melted bag of ice, “I have a wonderful cream that will help with aching and bruising.”
“Thank you.” She shifted again, took a sip of the warm brew and winced at how the motion tugged at the minor scrapes on her arm. “Now I understand why motorcycle riders wear leather.”
Aunt Eileen tried not to laugh. “Look on the bright side.”
Wondering where this was going, Eloise glanced at Quinn’s aunt.
“You didn’t break any nails.”
The two women burst into fits of laughter. That was just the light of humor she needed.
“Looks like I’m missing the party.” Arm in a sling, Finn came in holding a cup of coffee and sat in his favorite recliner.
“Don’t overdo it.” Aunt Eileen walked over to him and ruffled his hair as if he were a little boy.
“Brooks said I’m fine.”
“Yes. He also said that you shouldn’t overdo it.”
“Aunt Eileen,” Eloise had to laugh, Finn was whining like a three-year-old, “holding a cup of coffee isn’t overdoing it.”
“No.” She glared at him pointedly. “But it all depends on what you do next.”
Finn rolled his eyes. “You sound like my wife.”
It showed how much Eileen liked his niece-in-law because her smile spread from side to side.
“Is he giving you a hard time?” Joanna came into the living room, her purse slung over her shoulder, a travel mug in one hand. “I have to go into town for a few hours and I don’t trust him to stay home and follow Brooks’s instructions, so I’m leaving him with you.”
“Smart woman.” Aunt Eileen spun to face Finn. “You heard your wife. You let me know if you need anything.”
Resigned, Finn nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”
Joanna spun around. “I heard you took a nasty tumble yesterday.” Her face looked almost as pained as Eloise felt.
“Next dust storm I’m wearing chaps and a pilot’s jacket.”
That had everyone else in the room laughing.
Joanna’s expression softened. “How’s Danny doing?”
“Compared to the two of them,” Aunt Eileen’s eyes held understanding, “he’s right as rain, but he’s gone for a walk.”
Panic had Eloise shooting up in her seat.
“It’s okay.” Aunt Eileen’s expression softened. “Gray’s with him, and Quinn’s keeping an eye on him from a distance.”
Relieved, she sat back again. Even without the storm, she couldn’t handle Danny running away again. Visions of Danny sprinting toward her as the wind swept her feet from under her made the hair on her arms stand on edge. His face when they’d finally reached the ranch, exhausted and battered, was different—something had changed in him.
“Tim’s parents came for him an hour ago,” Aunt Eileen continued. “That boy won’t be driving in storms again anytime soon.”
Eloise nodded, remembering the teenager’s shell-shocked expression as they’d struggled back to the ranch through the darkness. Danny had kept him talking, kept him calm. Something had definitely shifted in her brother.
Taking a deep breath, she winced. Everything ached—muscles she didn’t know she had protested the slightest movement. Fighting a dust storm wasn’t for sissies.
Movement at the kitchen window caught her eye. Danny and Gray walking slowly back toward the house, Quinn at his side. Quinn. The man had literally risked his life along with the rest of his family to save her brother. She’d known almost since the first day she’d met him that he was special. When he refinished the Hoosier cabinet for her, if she hadn’t fallen in love with him before, she certainly had in that moment. But when he disappeared into the dust and she had no idea if he’d be able to make it back to the car, she knew then that no matter what, she didn’t want to live even a minute without being part of Quinn Farraday’s life.
The three stopped, Danny saying something that made Quinn nod.
Her heart smiled at the sight of Quinn with her brother. Maybe having a big brother figure would be part of the answer. Despite everything, Danny looked steadier, more like his old self. She couldn’t decide if she was more relieved or grateful that Danny hadn’t reverted to the troubled soul he’d been just a day ago. “He was so scared of being a burden,” she said quietly.
Aunt Eileen followed her gaze. “Sometimes a man needs to be reminded of his worth. Finding Tim might have saved more than one life last night.”
The back door opened, voices drifting in. Danny’s laugh—when was the last time she’d heard that sound?
Whatever happened next, something fundamental had shifted in both of them. Now the question was, what was she going to do about it.
If anyone had told Quinn a few months ago that he would be head over boot heels in love with a woman from Chicago, and about to go into business with her veteran brother, he would have laughed in the person’s face. And yet, here he was, desperately wanting to pull Eloise into his arms and keep her there safe and sound until they were too old to walk. And then there was Danny. They’d had a good long walk and an even longer talk.
“From the color and swelling on that leg, I’m thinking it’s a good thing the restaurant is closed on Mondays.” Quinn glanced at the exposed scrape. “Does it hurt much?”
Eloise shook her head, but he had a feeling it probably stung like the dickens.
“I have some news.” Danny was rocking on his toes.
Any minute Quinn expected him to float to the ceiling.
Danny inched closer to his sister. “After you mentioned our conversation about a bike shop, Quinn asked around to see if there’s ever been a bike shop in town.”
“You did?” Eloise’s gaze leveled with his. Her voice was soft and low and did funny things to his insides.
All he could do was nod.
“So,” Danny continued, “Burt heard about Quinn’s interest.”
“Burt?” Eloise’s face crumpled with confusion.
“He owns Fred’s Hardware store,” Aunt Eileen explained, waiting for Danny to continue.
“I’m sorry.” Eloise set the ice to one side. “Fred’s is owned by a man named Burt?”
Most of the Farradays in the room chuckled. Aunt Eileen just shrugged.
“Anyhow…” Danny looked ready to jump out of his skin if they didn’t let him finish. “Burt thought it was a great idea, but since there’s nothing available on Main Street any time soon, he offered to give some space at the hardware store for new bikes, and he even has a nearly empty store room that we could use for repairs and restoration.”
“Apparently,” Quinn stepped in, “restoring vintage bikes is a thing. Burt said that if Danny is any good at it, he could even sell the bikes online.”
“Really?” Now Aunt Eileen’s face carried the curious expression.
“Doesn’t surprise me,” Finn interjected. “People sell and ship things of all sizes, all over the country.”
“Well, if that’s true,” Aunt Eileen waved a thumb over her shoulder, “you can start with those two beat up old bikes that have been rusting behind the storage shed since before Grace was born.”
Danny’s eyes looked like they were about to fall out of their sockets when his head spun around, slack jawed, to face Quinn.
“Told you.” Quinn shrugged.
“Told him what?” Eloise’s gaze darted from Quinn to her brother.
“That there were two bikes on the property that were older than dirt and just as rusty, and that no one would mind if he restored them.”
“That’s certainly a start,” Finn nodded his approval, “but aren’t you going to need working capital for supplies as well as new bikes?”
“I could try for a start-up loan. There are programs for veterans,” Danny suggested.
Heads in the room nodded, but waited for more.
“That’s where I come in.” Quinn patted Danny on the back and her brother’s eyes narrowed with confusion. Seemed there were a lot of confused people today. “I think it’s a great idea, and if Danny’s willing to do all the heavy lifting, I’d be real pleased to be the money man partner.”
The only thing that felt better than seeing the shock and excitement on Danny’s face at Quinn’s offer, was seeing Eloise’s head snap around to face him, her eyes filled with what he hoped was love.
“So y’all are in the bicycle business?” Finn looked to the two men.
“Are we?” Quinn looked to Danny.
The young man, barely able to hold his excitement, nodded.
“But there’s a condition.” To his pleasure, Danny remained calm, his shoulders straight, and his smile hadn’t faltered.
This time when Quinn spoke, he stared Danny in the eyes. “There will be no more running away and scaring the life out of your sister.”
“I’ve learned my lesson on that. May have taken Mother Nature and the worst dust storm in half a century, but I get it now.”
All he could hope was that the fix would be that simple. Though with Gray sitting nearby, his focus on Danny, Quinn had the feeling that Danny would be getting more support than any one man needed.
Inching to the edge of her seat, Eloise slowly stood upright and leveled her gaze with Quinn’s. “May I speak with you a minute? Outside.”
Something akin to panic gurgled in his chest. All he could do was nod. Had he done something wrong? Should he have talked to her about it first? Of course he should have. Danny was her brother and he’d overstepped. Dang it.
Following her as she slowly crossed the living room and made her way through the kitchen and out the back door, Quinn prepared himself for the dressing down of a lifetime. “I’m sorry,” he said softly.
“What?” She turned around to face him.
“I’m sorry?”
“Sorry?”
He nodded.
“For what?”
He was sorely tempted to say for everything and anything she was unhappy about, but he might as well start with the obvious. “For not talking to you before moving forward on a business for Danny.”
“You think that’s why I asked to talk to you?”
He bobbed his head, then paused. “Isn’t it?”
Slowly, she inched toward him. “No. It’s not.”
Right about now, Quinn wished he was better at reading women, because he had no idea what her eyes were telling him. When she stopped inches away from him, her gaze leveling with his, her breath blowing softly against him, his heart almost came to a stop. Or maybe it actually had and he was no longer in Texas, but standing in heaven only inches from the woman who mattered most to him in the world.
“Why did you do it?”
“Do it?” Okay, now he not only couldn’t read women’s eyes, he clearly couldn’t understand their speech either.
“Why did you go to all that trouble to help Danny?”
“He’s a veteran. Not as lucky as my cousin Ethan who made it through multiple tours and came home with a sound mind. All veterans deserve our respect and if we can, our help. I could help. So I did.”
“Is that the only reason?” Her voice came out slow and sweet.
He nodded his head, she raised her brows at him, and then stopped nodding and shook his head just once from side to side. Swallowing hard, he peeled his tongue from the roof of his mouth and croaked out, “Because you love him.”
Her head tipped to one side, her gaze bore into him like a laser beam eating away at unknown debris. “Because I love him?”
Briefly closing his eyes and sucking in a fortifying breath, he leveled his gaze with hers and thought in for a penny, in for a pound. “And I love you. So who you love matters to me.”
A smile began to tip upward at one corner of her mouth before spreading to the other corner, leaving her smiling brightly at him. Before he could fully process what was happening, her arms went around his neck and she lifted up on her tiptoes. “Then maybe it’s a good thing I love you too.”
A hinge squeaked and Ryan called out, “Are you two planning… oops.” Quickly averting his eyes, Ryan backed into the kitchen and the door slammed shut behind him.
Despite their close proximity and momentarily locking lips, the two giggled before pulling apart, her arms still looped around his neck.
“So,” Quinn cleared his throat and left his hands on her hips, “you’re not mad at me?”
Smiling again, she shook her head.
“And you really just said you love me?”
Eyes twinkling, she bobbed her head at him.
“Is it too soon to beg you to marry me? If it is, I can probably hold out for an hour or two.”
Now they were both chuckling.
Giving her a peck on the nose, he sighed and leaning over, touched his forehead to hers. “As much as I would love to get down on one knee and sincerely ask for that beautiful hand in marriage, there’s a lot for Danny to work through and he’ll need you. But I do promise you this, as soon as he’s well enough to let you go, I’ll be down on that one knee in earnest.”
“And I’m going to hold you to that promise.”