“Don’t think I can manage both.”
“I had a feeling you’d say that. But I wouldn’t be your mother if I didn’t try. Besides, you know if I have a choice, I’ll take Christmas every time. The whole family will be here!”
With the exception of Sam, the entire Marshall clan showed up for every holiday. A few of the family’s celebrations were so grand, they’d earned the attention of local media. The slower pace of Thanksgiving had always been more to his liking, but since moving to Nashville, he’d spent the week between Christmas Eve and New Year’s at the Double M. It gave him plenty of time to catch up with extended family.
“Already booked my flight.” And God willing, he wouldn’t face weather or mechanical delays as he had in years past. “So what’s new?”
“Same soup, different day,” his dad said.
“Listen to him,” his mom put in. “We had another cougar running around here for weeks, giving us all nightmares.”
“Yeah, but we took care of him, same as always.”
He’d talked to Zach and heard all about it. “Too bad she took so many horses and cows before you got her.” But unfortunately, that’s life on the Front Range.
“How’s Aggie?” his mother asked.
During their few visits to Nashville, his parents had met his cantankerous landlady. “‘Same soup, different day,’” he quoted. Then he chuckled. “Still bragging that she’s a descendant of Andrew Jackson. If you want my honest opinion, the reason she never married is because she’d have to give up that famous last name.”
“Hard to imagine any right-minded man popping the question. That woman would try the patience of a saint.”
“Oh, now, Clay, that isn’t very nice!”
“The truth hurts sometimes.” He quickly changed the subject. “How’s your leg, son?”
“Fine.” It wasn’t, but they didn’t need to know that. Funny, the way his dad asked about it more often than his mom. Sam wondered how much of that was due to a fear of the answers...
“Have you talked with your cousin Nate lately?”
Sam heard a smile in his mother’s voice, and unless he was mistaken, it meant she was about to disclose a big secret. More accurately, what she considered a secret. During their last phone call, Nate had told him that he’d asked Eden to marry him...and she’d said yes. But why spoil his mother’s fun?
“We talked a while back. Why?”
“He and Eden are officially engaged, and they’re planning a June wedding. Though why they want to be like every other couple out there is anybody’s guess. At least they won’t have to worry about a venue. A very good thing, since they still haven’t chosen a date.” She lowered her voice to a near whisper. “I’m not supposed to know, so if he confides in you, mum’s the word.”
Sam heard his father’s good-natured groan. “The boy knows better than that, Vicky.”
He considered telling them that he’d bought into Mark’s club, then thought better of it. The announcement would be less confusing when delivered in person.
The sound of chair legs squawking across the hardwood told him his dad was on his feet. The man was a lot of things, but subtle wasn’t one of them. Laughing to himself, Sam said, “I’d better get to work and let you guys do the same.”
“Call soon,” his mom said. “And remember, you haven’t heard a thing about the wedding!”
He promised to keep Nate’s news to himself, even though in his opinion, secrets—even small ones—took folks into dangerous territory.
Long after hanging up, Sam remained on the balcony, watching the September breeze rustle going-gold leaves as sunlight flickered on the water’s surface. The shrill call of a bald eagle drew his attention skyward. No doubt it was one of those released along the river a few years earlier. The bird circled as it descended. It had probably hoped for a fat white bass but bagged a crappie.
“Better than nothin’, I guess,” he muttered, getting to his feet. He’d barely had time to lock the slider when the phone rang.
“Hey, young’un!”
He’d recognize Nate’s teasing voice anywhere. “Your ears were ringing, huh?”
“Uh-oh. Who’s been talking behind my back?”
“Just spoke to my folks.”
“Ah. Does Aunt Vicky still think she’s the only one who knows about the wedding?”
“Evidently, ’cause she made me promise to play dumb if I talked to you.”
“I’m not touching that line!” Nate laughed. “Mothers. I think they’re all cut from the same cloth.”
For a reason he couldn’t explain, Finn’s mother came to mind. Not all of ’em, he thought.
“So what’s up, cousin?”
“I was scrolling through my contacts,” Nate said. “When your name went by I said, ‘Give that boy a call.’”
Nate was ten months older than Sam, but to hear him talk, years separated them.
“You guys took down another cougar, huh?”
“Yeah. That’s something those foster kids living in Eden’s grandparents’ house will remember for a long, long time.”
He’d met Eden’s boys twice. Once during a summer visit to the ranch, and again after the fire that nearly killed Nate.
“Will Eden keep her job after you two swap I do’s?”
“Yes and no.”
Sam knew if he waited, Nate would explain.
“We cut a deal. Her greedy landlord sold Latimer House, so she moved them into her grandparents’ place. It beats being homeless, but the house lacks the space they need for classrooms and whatnot. Sooner or later, they’d outgrow it, and those boys need stability. So I made her an offer she couldn’t refuse. Soon as we’re married, the whole kit and caboodle of ’em will move into my house.” Nate chuckled. “They’re over here most of the time anyway.”
“Mighty generous of you, cousin.”
“Nah. It’s the right thing to do. They’re good kids, for the most part.”
For the most part? Something in Nate’s voice told Sam it was best to let that one slide. At least for now.
“How do their parents feel about you and Eden assuming the mom-and-dad roles in their kids’ lives?”
“Most are out of the picture, either in prison or dead. Eden and I are working with the state to become legal guardians.”
“For all of them?”
“All but the one.”
No doubt he was referring to Thomas, the kid who’d set fire to Nate’s barn, nearly killing himself, Nate and four of his horses. If Sam closed his eyes, he could still see how pale and weak his big, burly cousin looked after his release from the hospital. The only time he’d seen him in worse shape had been after the accident that had ended his major league career. Sam would have worried a whole lot more about Nate...if not for Eden.
Sam didn’t ask what had become of the boy. That, like news of the partnership, could wait until he got back to the Double M, and they could talk in person.
“Real reason I called,” Nate said, “was to ask if you’ll be my best man.”
“Of course I will! Does that mean you guys have set a date?”
“No,