“I’ve got to put in a couple of hours at the school,” Josh said, referring to the training center for would-be rodeo riders he and a friend had launched several months ago. “And Cort and Tommy are givin’ Rafe a hand around the ranch. Why don’t we meet at four? We can ride down to the pond and let the kids mess around awhile and then you can come back to our place for dinner. That work for you, Lia?”
“You’re coming, right?” Noah looked at her and then glanced to his dad.
Lia saw the hesitation cross Duran’s face. It was all still so new, his brothers, nephews and nieces, her—probably her more than anything else. She sensed his uneasiness and the last thing she wanted was to add to it. “I’d love to, but—”
“Great, then it’s settled,” Josh broke in.
Doubting it, at least in Duran’s case, Lia nearly made the excuse of work to back out of it. The excitement and expectation in Noah’s eyes gave her pause. She hated to disappoint the little boy and at the same time she didn’t want to make things harder for his father.
“It sounds good,” Duran answered before she could say anything. He looked at her, his slight smile rueful. “Are you okay with that?”
She knew he was asking about more than the afternoon’s plans and she really wanted to ask him the question in return. But there didn’t seem to be a good way to do that in front of Josh and Eliana. “I guess I could take a few hours off this afternoon. My last appointment is at three and I’m not on call today.”
“Then it’s a date,” Duran told Josh. “And thanks for everything.”
“Hey, you know we’re here for you and Noah, don’t you? I know it’s not been easy, gettin’ used to havin’ so much family all at once. But I meant what I said before, you’re stuck with us all now.”
Eliana smiled warmly, “And that does mean all of us.”
They said their goodbyes then, gathering up Sammy and leaving Duran and Lia to face each other.
“I hope you know that I’m here for you and Noah, too, however I can help,” she said.
“Is that professionally or personally?”
“I—”
“Never mind.” He shook his head as if irritated at himself for asking her. He looked at her a long moment, the intensity of his searching gaze making Lia want to look away before he saw too much. Then he said softly, “I know I’ve said it before, but thank you.” Leaning to her, he brushed a kiss over her cheek.
Warmth spread through her from his light touch and for a second she let herself savor the feel of his mouth against hers and for so much more.
“Are you done? Can we go now?” Noah interrupted. “I wanna go ride the horses.”
Noah’s protest broke their spell and they laughed and moved apart.
“Come on, pal,” Duran said, taking Noah by the hand, “let’s get out of here so Dr. Kerrigan can get back to work.”
Lia bent and gave Noah a hug. “We’ll be talking again about some exciting things for you soon. For today, though, I’ll just finish up here so I can meet you at the ranch later.”
“We’ll be looking forward to it,” Duran said and after all her doubts about whether or not he wanted her there, Lia believed it was true.
Chapter Six
“All saddled up and ready to ride,” Josh said with a brisk slap to the plump old paint’s rump. “Peggy here will do just fine for you, Noah. She’s used to goin’ nice and slow. Anna never had a bit of trouble with her when she was learnin’ to ride.”
“This is my horse,” Sammy, sitting atop a smaller mare, proudly pointed out to Noah. “Her name is Sarah. I always ride her.”
Nearby, Cort was helping Tommy lengthen his stirrup, Anna watching from the horse beside them. “If you keep growing like this, we’re gonna have to find you a new saddle.” He turned to Duran. “Just wait until Noah hits his teens. You can’t keep ’em clothed or fed.”
Duran had rarely let himself indulge in imaging Noah as a teenager. The thought that he might never see his son grow up always quelled his visions. But now, could he dare to indulge in thinking of, even planning for Noah’s future? Every cell in his body screamed yes, but the euphoria of hearing Sawyer was a match was dispelling, leaving in its wake all-too-familiar fears. At the hospital all he could feel was hope. After even a few short hours of mulling things over, letting the news sink in, reason declared war on blind optimism.
He distanced himself from the raging conflict of emotions, not willing to air them to his brothers, and simply answered Cort with a noncommittal, “So I’ve heard.”
Cort stopped what he was doing and laid a hand on Duran’s shoulder. Duran tensed, but it didn’t seem to discourage Cort. “You’ll find out. Josh told me the great news about Sawyer.”
“It is good news,” Duran said, thinking how inadequate his words were compared to his feelings. “I’m still a little overwhelmed, I guess.”
“I can see why. But you’ve got the best pediatrician in town on your team.” Both men turned to catch Lia a few feet away throwing one long, slender leg over her mount. “And she’s not a half-bad horsewoman either.”
Lia, not knowing they were talking about her, threaded the reins through her fingers. “Where are your girls and your little boy today?” she called over to Cort.
“Quin had a playdate and the girls are at ballet. Angela would have gladly skipped it to come riding, but Laurel wouldn’t hear of it. That’s what they get for having a teacher for a mother. Laurel would consider it an insult to another teacher to let her daughter ditch class.”
“Too bad for them,” Tommy said, slanting a grin at Anna. “They’re gonna be jealous we got to go.”
Cort gave Tommy a stern look. “No rubbing it in or next time you’ll be sitting in on ballet class.”
The threat made Noah giggle. “That would be way funny.”
“Ha, ha,” Tommy shot back.
Finishing Tommy’s stirrups, Cort turned back to Duran. “I know you keep hearing this, but anything Laurel and I can do—” he paused “—anything at all. We’re here.”
“I told him he was stuck with us,” Josh added as he lifted Noah onto Peggy’s back. He gave Noah a quick lesson on how to steady himself and stay upright, then swung into the saddle of his own mount.
Duran appreciated the gesture; he still couldn’t believe how readily and easily his brothers had accepted him, Noah and their situation. It almost seemed too good to be true, and a big part of him feared it was. While none of his brothers had said or done anything to justify his doubts yet, he had long abandoned the habit of relying on anyone else for support or comfort.
And that’s why you keep spilling everything to Lia? Because you don’t share, you don’t rely on anyone?
He caught her watching him and the slight questioning expression on her face made him wonder what she’d read in his. Shaking off his introspection, he looked between Cort and Josh and said, “I don’t know how to thank you, all of you.”
“By helpin’ us get these kids to the pond.” Josh pointed to a wooded area to the east. “We’ll keep it to a walk, since it’s your first time, Noah.”
“Can we go already?” Noah insisted, wriggling excitedly in his saddle.
Duran watched his eager son, reins in hand, looking as comfortable and confident on Peggy as a boy who’d grown up on a ranch. “Stay close to Dr. Kerrigan and me, okay?”
“Tommy, you and Anna keep an eye