The peppermint lodge, p.8
The Peppermint Lodge, page 8
But instead, Rylnn begged to show him the corral first. Seeing as he was a silent investor in Cass’s business, he agreed.
Cass and the kids had been busy while he’d been at games and practice. Like Rylnn had told him, the corral had white lights strung high above, and signs had been painted boasting Christmas trees for sale.
“This is very nice.”
“This sign’s for the driveway, and this one’s for big roads.”
“Very nice.”
The sound of Cass’s truck returning filled the air, and they headed to the front to greet her.
“Cup of coffee?” Landon asked, hoisting his insulated cup as she slid from the truck, her cowboy boots creating small dust clouds as they landed in the dirt.
“Thanks.” She reached for it and took a long swallow before he could explain that he’d been offering to get her a cup of her own.
They headed inside, Rylnn’s bike forgotten. Landon was unsure what Cass had planned for the day, but he was determined to be helpful in the hour he had before he left for the city.
They entered the house through the kitchen, Landon falling behind to test his screen door repair job. Not bad. Rylnn danced through the doorway, singing one of the songs from her favorite movie. Moments later, he heard a clatter and the thud of something falling—or someone.
He jogged into the kitchen to see Cass’s brown hair spread out from under her giant tan dog. She was laughing, saying, “Get off! Get off me, you big lug!”
“Hey, Prince Charming, no!” Landon understood the way the dog felt. The woman was growing on him, too. But he wasn’t about to knock her down and lick her face.
At least not yet.
He hauled the Great Dane off her, but she stayed where she was even after the beast was put outside. Concerned, Landon came over to see if she was okay.
“Just savoring a feeling,” she said, when he gave her a questioning look.
“Wow, you need to go out on a date if cold tile and dog kisses are something you find worth savoring.”
She laughed, but still didn’t move.
“What kind of feeling? Numbness? Broken bones?” He was tempted to splay out next to her, curious about whatever world she was visiting down there on the chipped brown tile.
Her chest expanded as she sat up with a sigh. Landon reached for her hand and hoisted her to her feet. In cowboy boots, she was just the right height for him. Perfect.
If he was to kiss her. Which he was not.
It was just one of those thoughts that ran through his head when he found a tall woman. That was all.
“What was the feeling?” he asked, after clearing his throat.
“Nothing.”
“Tell me.”
“It sounds…” Her cheeks turned red. “It would make you uncomfortable.”
“Now you have to tell me.” He leaned against the counter, focused solely on her.
“You’re going to think I’m nesting and that your single status is in danger.”
There was a twinkle in her eyes and he laughed, knowing that she wasn’t the type to corner a guy or to read too much into a situation—even one like theirs. It was one of the reasons he’d chosen her, and why he was so comfortable here.
Her eyes got a faraway look and she shrugged. “I don’t know how to explain it.”
“Try.”
She tipped her head, glancing at him. “You know those moments you see in movies where everything is just warm and perfect?”
“Sure.” He didn’t, but he figured if she kept talking, it might click.
“It felt like that.”
Warm and perfect?
“Happy?” he asked.
“More than that.”
“Content? Secure?”
“Even more.”
“Okay.”
She finished his coffee and rinsed the cup.
He was curious now. Really curious. She was putting up invisible barriers, locking away what she was feeling, afraid it was too much for him. He knew she wasn’t about to profess her love or anything crazy, but still…
“You won’t scare me off, Cass. It’s one of the things I love about staying here with you. We click. I trust you. Same wavelength and all that. Ry and I are happy and content, too.”
She shifted impatiently, as if he wasn’t listening. “Better get ready to run,” she murmured, keeping her back to him.
He moved to the sink, then leaned against the counter, facing her. “Already ran this morning. What is it? You want to have my babies?” He gave her a light nudge.
“Yeah, of course. Who doesn’t?” Her dry tone left his ego dented. What had he expected her to say?
She half turned, one hand on the counter’s edge, and waved around the kitchen with the other one. “It feels like marriage. Family. We’re a family.”
“Acting like one.”
She added quickly, “I know. I’m not putting any of that on us and this situation. It’s just…I haven’t felt secure like that since I was a kid. This morning felt like…family. It was nice. That’s all.”
She wouldn’t quite meet his eyes.
“It’s okay, Cass.” He gave her shoulder a light massage. “You already warned me. I expect entrapment and am prepared to evade it.”
She reached out to give him a playful whack, but he caught her arm, drawing her close. For a second, he almost pulled her against him for a kiss, as if it was an old habit of theirs. Instead, he tugged her in for a hug.
“Little do you know, you’re already trapped,” she mumbled against his chest. “Two kids, a dog, me. All under one roof.” She glanced up at him, her grin wicked. “And I’ve secretly told everyone in town not to rent to you, so you can never escape.”
“Works for me. We like it here.”
“It does work, doesn’t it?” She was leaning back, no longer in his arms, brave enough to look him in the eye.
He nodded.
“I know it sounds crazy, but I always thought I’d have this feeling. You know? Just assumed this was how my marriage was going to feel. Easy.”
“But it didn’t?” He noticed she never spoke about Dusty’s dad, not even when talking about the medical bills.
She shook her head. “No. But that’s okay. I wouldn’t have had this morning.”
But in her marriage, surely there had been moments like this morning? Better moments. More of them before things had dissolved, right?
She smiled, and he could see it in her. Something had shifted. Him being here and doing small things around the place, Rylnn serving as her shadow—even with everything going on with Dusty—it was all good for her. Healing somehow.
This was where he was supposed to be. Him and Rylnn.
“Anyway, I was just breathing it in. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Not at all.” Not in the least. Because something was shifting inside him, too. He just wasn’t sure what it was yet and if there was a word for it.
Chapter 6
“The Christmas trees weren’t supposed to arrive for at least another week,” Cass muttered to herself. She stormed into the house, slamming the screen door behind her. They were jam-packed in their crates and it had taken her an hour to unpack the first crate of six sitting in her yard.
Her arms already itched from the tiny pine needle scratches that her thick flannel shirt had been unable to protect her from.
Time had gotten away from her and she had only an hour to fix the kids’ costumes for trick-or-treating, as well as figure out what to feed them for supper. If it were just herself and Dusty, they’d have cereal, but being paid to care for Rylnn kind of upped the game and removed the option of some of her less than fabulous parenting shortcuts. The ones she’d never admit to another person for fear of judgment.
Cass stopped beside the fireplace to resettle her mind and figure out how she was going to triage this evening. Too many problems, not enough solutions.
Alexa’s stupid old truck had died on her between the doctor’s office in San Antonio and home. It had been a rough morning even before then, with the doctor’s news and the kids’ meltdowns, but if she thought about any of that now she might start crying.
Solutions. She needed to focus on making sure Halloween didn’t become ruined for the children.
Landon should be back from practice in time to drive them into town for trick-or-treating. The Christmas trees could wait in their travel crates until after that.
And they were having cereal for supper.
She sucked in a steadying breath, fighting the urge to check on Dusty, even though she knew he was okay. Today’s appointment had not brought the good news she’d wanted, and a panicky sensation enveloped her whenever she thought about the visit. Dusty’s doctor had gently suggested that the kids play outside his office while he brought in a pediatric surgeon who specialized in cardiology, so they could discuss the possibility of heart surgery.
Breathe.
They needed more tests first. More research. More consulting with other pediatric cardiologists.
Breathe.
Time to focus on the here and now. Halloween. Find the glue gun and fix Rylnn’s massive cardboard crown, which they’d been working on all week. Help Dusty make new bat-throwing star things for his Batman costume.
The doctors had told her his status wasn’t urgent. That he’d be fine if he didn’t exert himself with a lot of running around—which he didn’t seem very apt to do anyway, due to his fatigue.
She rubbed her arms again, her attention drifting to the mantel. Something was different about the lineup of family photos.
A framed picture of Dusty as a baby, lying on his stomach, smiling toothlessly.
She and Alexa as teens, laughing at the camera.
Dusty sledding in Montana, cheeks rosy from the cold.
And something new: a hand-drawn picture done in colored markers. It had been folded over the framed photo of Cass on a horse, taking a place of honor.
She lifted the drawing from the mantel, careful not to mess with how it was folded around the frame. Lots of pinks and blues and yellow, and a giant sun in the right-hand corner that was Rylnn’s calling card. Four stick figures: two tall, two short. One of the tall figures was blue and had a hockey stick. The other was drawn in pink and wore a cowboy hat. Between them stood two smaller figures, one in a princess dress and one in a cowboy hat. All four were holding hands.
A family.
With shaking fingers, Cass returned the drawing to the mantel, blinking away the sudden moisture in her eyes.
What Rylnn wanted wasn’t wrong. Cass wanted it, too. Someone who balanced her out, like Alexa had found in her husband. They made it look easy, and Cass knew from experience that love and marriage were anything but. At the end of the day, Alexa was never rowing that boat of hers alone because Cash was there, ready to take the oars when she needed a break.
And since Cass knew just how rare that was, she was more than happy to savor her pretend family and Landon’s help—even if only for a few weeks.
Landon entered the kitchen from the side yard, finding Cass hunched over a glue gun. She looked up, delight sparking in her eyes.
“You’re home?” She quickly checked the clock over the stove before she resumed her work, brow furrowing in concentration.
“I thought I’d missed trick-or-treating. Where’s your truck?”
“Dead.”
He stepped closer, inhaling the sweet pine smell that filled the space. “What are you up to? And why do you smell like you’ve been rolling around in a forest?”
When she looked up from her task again, her gaze unfocused, he realized she was frazzled.
“What?” she asked.
He pulled a pine needle from her braid. Her Christmas trees must be in the crates lined up by the corral. “Can I help with anything?”
“No, I’ve got it.”
“Have the kids eaten?”
“No, I’m sorry.” She waved toward the cupboard. “There’s cereal.”
He watched her out of the corner of his eye as he ignored the breakfast cupboard and checked the fridge’s contents, then began prepping grilled cheese sandwiches.
“So your truck’s dead?”
“Cash and Nick are looking it over.”
Nick was Alexa and Cash’s ranch hand, if he recalled correctly. His girlfriend, Polly, ran the rescue horse portion of the ranch or something like that. She was from Canada, too—the one time he’d met her they’d mostly cracked jokes about the Great White North, but he hadn’t really had the chance to find out more about her or what she did over at Blueberry Creek Ranch.
“What are you driving in the meantime?” Landon asked Cass.
She’d been taking Rylnn to story hour at the library, drop-in dance lessons and even a few play dates, but all that would stop if she had no wheels.
She shrugged, the muscles in her shoulders tightening. “I’ll figure something out.” She held up the crown she and Rylnn had been working on for days. “What do you think? Can you tell it got smashed in an elevator today?”
An elevator? “Oh, yeah! Hey, how was Dusty’s appointment? I meant to ask first thing.” How had it slipped his mind? He’d been thinking about the boy all day, knowing that this appointment would determine whether Dusty needed surgery.
Cass shook her head, dropping her eyes as she swept glitter from the counter into her cupped hand. “Rylnn! Crown’s done!”
“It’s done?” Rylnn asked, hopping into the room.
“Check it out.” Cass passed her the fixed costume piece.
Rylnn placed it on her head. “It’s beautiful.” She spun, then stopped in the kitchen doorway, hollering so loud she bent over, “Dusty! It’s your turn!”
“His turn for what?” Landon asked, tossing buttered bread into the hot pan, then layering on sliced cheese.
“Fixing his costume.”
“What’s wrong with it?” When Landon had left that morning, both kids had been decked out, beaming and proud of their costumes, ready for their trip to the city. It sounded like it had been a rough day all around.
“He threw his Batman’s stars out the window,” Rylnn answered. “Auntie Lexa wouldn’t turn back for them.”
“She didn’t hear him,” Cass said, the frazzled fatigue Landon had noted earlier returning.
“You were with Alexa?” Landon asked.
“She rescued us.”
“From the side of the road?”
“It was so boring.” Rylnn sighed.
“Dusty! Come in here if you want to make new stars.” Cass turned to Landon. “How long until sandwiches?”
“Five minutes,” he said, checking the bread’s white underside. “When does trick-or-treating start?”
“We’re meeting at Hannah’s at a quarter after six so I can borrow a dress. Do you have a costume?”
He glanced at the clock. They were going to have to inhale supper to make it to town on time.
“I’ll wear a jersey and drive us in. Tomorrow, I’ll catch a ride with Maverick so you can use the SUV.”
“No, no. I’ll borrow something of Alexa’s if we need to go somewhere.”
“It’s not a problem for me to carpool until you find a replacement.”
“I’m not buying a new truck right now.” The stress lines around Cass’s mouth returned.
“I’m hungry,” Dusty said, entering the kitchen, his black Batman cape—made from one of Landon’s old T-shirts—swirling behind him.
“Landon’s making sandwiches.”
Dusty, grinning at him, grabbed something from his costume’s utility belt and whipped it forward. It fluttered through the air, landing at Landon’s feet.
“Where’s the cardboard?” Cass asked. “We’ll make you new batarangs.”
“Ow!” Landon hopped as if Dusty’s weapon had hit him. “Holy cow, Batman! What was that? I told you I’m not The Joker! I’m innocent. I’m just a goalie. A hockey player! I’m a friend of Gotham City!” He pretended to be scared, throwing himself behind Cass, grabbing her shoulders and swinging her like a shield between himself and Dusty.
The little boy giggled, trying to get to him with a piece of painted cardboard the size of his palm.
“What is that?” Landon clung to Cass. “Save me, Catgirl.”
Cass giggled. “I’m not Catgirl.”
“She’s Cowgirl!” Rylnn announced, running back into the room, her flowing pink dress glimmering under the kitchen lights. “And I’m the Boss Princess!” She twirled what looked like an invisible lasso at Cass, who pretended to snatch it from the air.
Cass twisted out of Landon’s grip like someone well-versed in self-defense. After throwing Rylnn’s “lasso” at Batman, she leaped across the room, grabbed her son and locked him in her arms.
Landon, laughing, lifted Boss Princess in the air. “We saved the day!”
“I’m a good guy!” Dusty yelled. He slipped from his mom’s grip, then turned to point at her.
“No running, Dusty!” Cass warned.
“She’s the bad guy!” he said, halting in his tracks. “Get her, Blockade!”
“I’m on it!” Landon set Rylnn down and dropped into a ready stance, arms out, as Cass squealed and mimicked his posture. “Nobody gets past me. I’m The Blockade.”
Her eyes widened dramatically in false alarm.
“What’s our plan, Boss Princess?” he said to Rylnn, not taking his attention from Cass.
“Get her!” Rylnn lifted her arm as if shooting a starting pistol.
Landon lunged at Cass who, laughing, dodged him, pushing open the screen door and running out onto the porch. Prince Charming, who’d heard the commotion, barked at Landon when he came out after her.
“It’s okay, PC!” He dashed past the dog, Rylnn hot on his heels.
“Careful!” Cass called.
The whole yard smelled like evergreens and Landon inhaled, brought back to days on his grandma’s ranch when Chinooks would come down the mountains. The warm air, a thousand miles from the coast, would eat up the snow, changing the temperature from frigid to balmy within a few hours.
Home.
He caught up with Cass at the corral. She’d unpacked a few Christmas trees earlier, and had leaned them against the wide wooden fence. She darted behind the rails at the opening, her back to a seven-foot pine, its branches bound up with twine.
