“Margot.” Laura Crawford moved forward holding out both of her hands in welcome. “I’m so glad you could join us.”
Seeing Margot warm to her instantly, Brad had to admit his mother had a way. Laura was a pretty middle-aged woman with blond hair cut in a stylish bob, blue eyes and a friendly smile.
But Brad knew from personal experience the woman could be tough if the situation warranted it. You didn’t raise four boys and two daughters without a spine. The eyes in the back of her head helped immensely. Of her six children, only Natalie resembled her, both in coloring and in stature.
Tonight his mom wore khakis and a blue checked shirt. Though in her late fifties, she looked much too young to have grown children. When his dad had snagged her, he’d gotten himself a gem. Nearly forty years later, they were still happy together.
That lifelong love, devotion and trust had been what Brad had hoped to have in his marriage with Janie.
“Where’s Dad?” he asked as he followed his mother and Margot up the steps to the porch.
“Inside changing. He wanted to wear jeans and that old flannel shirt.” Laura smiled at her son. “I said that while that may be good enough for dinner with you, it’s not appropriate when we have guests.”
“Oh, Mrs. Crawford, jeans and a flannel shirt would have been fine.”
“Please call me Laura.” His mother patted Margot’s arm. “Believe me, it doesn’t hurt any of us to go outside our comfort zone every now and then.”
They’d barely stepped inside the front door when Todd Crawford came clomping down the stairs in navy pants and a sweater, grumbling with each step.
The disgruntled look on his face was replaced with a smile when he caught sight of Margot.
“Well, this is a pleasure,” Todd said. “It’s been years since you paid us a visit.”
“Hello, Mr. Crawford.”
Todd gave a laugh. “It’s Todd, honey. When I hear Mr. Crawford I always think of my granddad.”
Too bad, Brad thought, they didn’t have any bees hovering around. The honey couldn’t melt in his parents’ mouth. It bordered on sickening. But he wouldn’t complain.
He thought of how differently his parents—his mother especially—had reacted when his sister Nina had begun associating with Dallas Traub and his kids. Thankfully, now that Nina and Dallas were married, both of his parents had come around.
“What’s for dinner?” Brad asked. “I’m starving.”
“We’re having pot roast,” his mother said easily, but he caught her warning glance. “I thought it’d be nice if we had a glass of wine in the living room before we ate.”
Because he’d been warned and because, small though she might be, his mother was definitely a force to be reckoned with, Brad didn’t say he preferred beer to wine. And his hunger would be put on hold, until his mother deemed it time to eat.
He almost wished Natalie was here to run interference. But then he realized that would be playing with fire. Nat was likely to side with Margot and then his mother would join them, leaving him and his father outnumbered. At least this way, if it came to choosing sides and they went by gender, it would be a draw.
“Would you like a glass of wine?” Laura asked Margot, already lifting a bottle they’d had breathing on a side table.
“Absolutely.” Margot took a seat in a chintz-covered chair, leaving Brad no choice but to sit on the sofa beside his father, who didn’t smell nearly as good as Margot.
“Margot has a blue heeler,” Brad said to no one in particular, once they all had their wine.
“Really?” His dad actually looked interested. “Now, that’s a dog. Not like—”
“Watch it, Todd,” Laura warned.
Margot took a sip of her wine, watching the interaction with undisguised interest.
“We’re babysitting my friend Lucille’s dog. Lucy lives in Missoula and she’s very ill,” Laura explained. “We promised to keep the dog—”
“You promised to keep her,” Todd said pointedly.
The remark earned his father a scowl. Brad wanted to empathize but he kept his expression impassive. He’d quickly learned no one, but no one, dissed the Maltese.
“Brandie Sue,” Laura called out in that sugary sweet voice usually reserved for young children and the elderly...and white balls of fluff.
Seconds later, tiny toenails could be heard clicking across the hardwood. A small dog that couldn’t weigh more than five pounds trotted in. Her pristine white hair was long and flowing and a pink ribbon adorned the top of her head.
“There’s my baby girl,” Laura simpered.
“She’s adorable,” Margot said, sounding surprisingly sincere.
For some reason Brad hadn’t expected a woman who rode horses, had a blue heeler and seemed more comfortable in jeans and boots to be into frou-frou dogs.
Brandie Sue paused and cocked her head, ignoring him as usual, her gaze totally riveted to Margot. If there were justice in the world, the animal would bare those little white teeth at her.
Instead BS, as Brad privately thought of her, swished her plume of a tail from side to side and approached Margot.
“She likes you.” Laura couldn’t have looked any more pleased when the dog sprang into Margot’s lap. “She won’t go near Brad or Nate.”
A hint of a smile formed on Margot’s lips. “I believe animals can sense whether you truly like them.”
Laura nodded. “What does your dog think of Brad?”
Margot stroked Brandie Sue’s fur and gave what Brad thought of as a Mona Lisa smile. “No comment.”
Laura laughed, clearly delighted. “What’s your dog’s name?”
“Viper.”
Margot shot Brad a disapproving look. “Vivian.”
His mother frowned.
“Her name is Vivian,” Margot repeated. “She’s a real sweetie.”
Brad hid his snort behind a cough when both women stared at him.
“She’s about two weeks from having a litter of pups. Father unknown.”
“Once they get older, if you need any help finding homes, I can ask around,” his dad offered. “Herding dogs are always in demand.”
“Thanks.” Margot took another sip of her wine.
“Have you heard anything from your father, dear?” Laura asked, her blue eyes filled with concern.
“Not a word.” Margot lowered the glass, her expression now troubled. “I called Gage. He sent that detective of his—Russ, I guess?—out checking, but he had nothing new to report.”
“Did they ever find out who purchased the train ticket for your dad?” Todd asked.
Margot shot a sidewise glance in Brad’s direction before answering. “No leads.”
“I don’t know who’d do such a thing.” Laura reached over and patted her son’s knee. “I’m proud of Brad for keeping the place going while your father is gone.”
Todd nodded. “A ranch doesn’t run itself. The Leap of Faith has been limping along ever since your ma died.”
“I didn’t realize how bad things had gotten,” Margot said, but something in her downward glance told Brad she’d suspected and felt guilty over staying