Claire knew from past experience with Zaylie’s mother that one good day in the first trimester did not mean that morning sickness was completely over. So it wasn’t a surprise when she found Retta in the bathroom on Friday morning. Or that she could hear Cade in there with her. Claire hadn’t even gotten her coat hung on the hall tree in the foyer when Cade carried Retta out of the bathroom and laid her on the sofa.
“I know it will be worth it in the end,” Retta said. “But I hate being sick.”
“I know, darlin’. I’m so sorry that you have to go through this.” Cade washed her face with a wet cloth.
Claire slipped away into the kitchen where Zaylie was already on a chair on the other side of the bar with a biscuit cutter in her hand. “Is today Christmas tree day?”
“I don’t know, sweetheart. If we were home in Randlett it would be, but this isn’t our house. I’m not sure when Retta and Cade start decorating, but we can ask them,” Claire answered. “Well, would you look at that?”
“What?” Zaylie’s eyes darted around the room.
“The roof is dripping. The snow and ice is starting to thaw. We might be able to go home day after tomorrow,” Claire said.
“I’ll be glad to drive you.” Levi entered the kitchen.
He was dressed in faded jeans and a long-sleeved knit shirt, but his hair still looked like he’d combed it with a hay rake. When he caught her staring at it, he ran his fingers through it.
“Yes!” Zaylie pumped her little fist in the air. “I want Levi to drive us. Oh no!” Her hands went to her cheeks, and her eyes got huge. “That’s tomorrow and then the next day, and we’ll leave. What about my kittens?” Tears welled up in her eyes and began to run down her cheeks and drip on her shirt. “And Beau?” She sobbed and moved her little hands up to cover her eyes. “And Little Bit?” She sat down on the floor and got the hiccups. “Oh, we can’t leave, Aunt Claire. We just can’t.”
Levi sat down beside the little girl and pulled her onto his lap. “Well, you could stay a few more days.” He patted her back and looked up at Claire. “I just talked to Mavis, and she’s called the Harris family. They can’t get up here until Wednesday for you to see the house, and they would rather be the ones to show you around. If you just stay on a bit longer, it would save you a trip back down here.”
No matter when they left, there would be a scene, so Claire figured she might as well get it over with in a couple of days rather than prolonging the issue. But when Zaylie’s blue eyes begged her to say yes, she simply couldn’t say no.
“Okay, but only until Wednesday, and then we’re leaving,” Claire said.
“Yay!” She jumped up out of Levi’s lap and wrapped her arms around Claire. “I love you to the moon and back. Can we put up a Christmas tree here?”
“Yes, you can, princess.” Levi got to his feet. “We put up the tree and decorate the Saturday after Thanksgiving, which is tomorrow.”
“And we’d love to have your help, Zaylie.” Justin yawned as he crossed the floor and poured a cup of coffee.
“Princess Zaylie. Levi said so.” She grinned.
“Pardon me.” Justin bent at the waist and kissed her hand. “My mistake. It won’t happen again.”
Zaylie giggled. “Will you marry me when I get old, Justin? You can be the prince like in Cinderella.”
“Oh, honey, when you get to the age that you’re thinkin’ about boys, I’ll be old and gray haired. Besides, I figured you’d want to marry Levi since he rescued you,” Justin teased.
“That’s in Snow White and I’m Cinderella,” she said. “I can’t marry Levi because Aunt Claire is going to do that.”
Instantly, heat flushed into Claire’s cheeks, and she looked up to see Levi staring right at her.
“Zaylie Noelle Mason! Why would you say that?” she gasped.
“Because you are Snow White and I’m Cinderella. Remember?” Zaylie put up her palms in frustration.
“You are so right.” Claire quickly explained, “On Halloween, I dressed up like Snow White and she was Cinderella.”
“So you think I’m the prince that wakes Snow White with a kiss?” Levi asked.
“Yep, and then you’ll live happy ever after.” Zaylie nodded. “Come on, Justin, let’s go see if Retta is feelin’ better.” She grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the living room. “I sure wish she’d have that baby today so I could hold it.”
Claire whipped around to stir up the biscuit dough and hoped that her beet-red face didn’t cook the dough right there in the bowl. She felt Levi’s presence before he spoke, his warm breath warming her neck. “You think that the princess is clairvoyant?”
“No, sir, I do not!” Her tone was so squeaky that she didn’t even recognize it as her own voice. “And if a witch shows up at the back door with a pretty apple, I’ll be sure to shoot her sorry ass.”
“Well, in case you are hungry and eat the apple, I’ll do my best to wake you with a kiss,” he whispered, and was gone before she could smart off an answer.
The rest of the day Levi was in and out of the house for meals, but there were no more little moments when Claire was alone with him. Mavis called right after breakfast to tell her that the Harrises would be ready to show her the house at four o’clock on Wednesday afternoon. She fretted all day about whether to take Zaylie with her or to ask Retta if she would babysit for a couple of hours. If she took her, then Zaylie would tell Grant, and she’d like to have everything set in stone before she said a word to her brother.
Maybe it was so that he couldn’t talk her out of her decision to leave Randlett. To him, it would be downright crazy to sink the majority of her savings account into a house when she already had one for free. He’d try to talk her out of it, and down deep in her heart, she felt like she was doing the right thing.
That night she tossed and turned, had trouble getting to sleep and then woke up every two hours. She’d settled into a pretty routine life years ago, and now everything was changing; it was exciting and scary at the same time.
The next morning the roads had cleared enough that the hired hands could get to the ranch, so Justin and Cade took a lunch with them, and Levi was sent to Wichita Falls for a big load of some kind of special feed.
She’d gotten the kitchen put back to rights and was thinking about what to have for lunch since the guys wouldn’t be there, when the phone rang.
“Can you get that?” Retta called from the living room. “I don’t want to move an inch.”
“Longhorn Canyon,” Claire answered.
“Hey, it’s Levi. I’m passing the old Harris place right now and thought I’d give you a call and tell you what I see, now that you’re interested in this place. The roof looks solid, but the house could use a coat of paint come spring. I’d be glad to help. Bet between the two of us we could get it done in a weekend,” he said.
Immediately her I-can-do-it-myself attitude rose up, and she opened her mouth to tell him as much, but then she remembered the strawberries. “I haven’t even bought the place yet, but thank you for the offer.”
“Sure thing. You want me to watch Zaylie while you go look at the place? We should be able to let Little Bit out into the corral by then, and she can play with him,” Levi said. “It’d be hard to talk business with her running from room to room and asking a million questions.”
Claire swallowed a ton of pride. “She’d love that, and I appreciate you thinking of it.” She took a deep breath. Asking for a favor wasn’t easy, but there was no way around it. “Would it be all right if I drive the work truck that day?”
“Not a problem, or you can borrow my truck, either one. Your choice,” Levi said. “Is Zaylie getting excited about putting up the tree?”
“Oh yes! She’s boring Retta to tears talking about it,” Claire answered. “I should go in there and give Retta some relief, but thanks again for the help.”
“I’m here for you. See you later,” he said.
“Bye.” She put the house phone back on the base.
By evening Retta was feeling well enough to help put up the Christmas tree. As they waited for the guys to come back with the tree and all the trimmings, she told Claire, “I just want you to know that I like having you and Zaylie here, and you two are welcome to stay as long as you like. You should definitely come for our big ranch party here before Christmas.”
“When is this party?” Claire asked.
“It’s always the first Saturday in December,” she said. “If you want to stay until then, you’d be right here close to Sunset. That’s sayin’ that you like the Harris place and decide to put in a business there.”
Zaylie whipped around from the window where she’d been watching for the guys to bring in the tree and decorations. “A party! Right here! Can I go to it?”
Retta pulled her close for a hug. “You are sure enough invited. There will be lots of little kids there. According to the guys, it’s a family affair, and we get to dress up.”
Zaylie’s eyes almost popped right out of her head. “For real. Like Cinderella.”
“Maybe not that dressed up but in a pretty Sunday school dress,” Retta answered.
“And you, Miz Zaylie”—Levi entered the living room with a long box on his shoulder—“would look like a princess even if you just wore your jeans. Reckon you could hold the door open for Justin and Cade? They’re right behind me with all the boxes of decorations.”
“Yep, I can.” Zaylie ran that way.
Children usually adapted better than adults, but Claire was still amazed that Zaylie had fit right into the ranch so quickly.
So did you, the pesky little voice in her head said. Other than that little bout of fear in the cabin, it’s like you’re visiting your closest friends or family.
I’m just making the best out of a bad situation, she argued.
“So do y’all have a big tree at your house or just a little one?” Levi glanced at Claire as he put the box on the floor.
“We have a four-foot one. The house is small, so that pretty much fills up the living room,” Claire answered.
“When will you put yours up?” Retta asked.
Claire wasn’t sure how to answer that. With this new idea thrown out concerning her staying two more weeks—well, she’d have to think long and hard about that. “Probably when we get back to Randlett. It looks like Grant will be finished in time for the holidays, and I want to have things ready.”
Zaylie hopped around on one foot. “I get two trees this year!”
“Sounds like it.” Levi followed Justin and Cade inside. Each of them had a box or two on his shoulders. “That’s all of the tree stuff. Y’all ready to get this show on the road?”
Cade opened the big box with a Christmas tree on the front and got busy putting the tree branches on the tall center section. “I keep tellin’ the guys that we need one of those things that you just pop out of the box and it already has the lights on it.”
“But what’s the fun in that?” Justin chuckled. “Dad always fussed about havin’ to get all the branches perfect so that Mama would be happy. And Mama griped because he thought his work was done when he got the tree positioned according to Mama’s instruction. This brings back memories.”
“What are your memories?” Levi bumped a shoulder against Claire’s.
“The lady who cleaned our house usually put up the tree about a week before the holiday,” Claire answered. “When we were growing up, holidays meant work-related parties. But Grant and I have tried to make our Christmas a lot more personal.” Claire turned to Retta. “How about your traditions before you came to the ranch?”
“My folks loved Christmas. We had a party every year for the neighbors and their church family and went to several just like it. Mama loved a real tree, so we’d go to the woods and Daddy would cut it down, and then we’d decorate it.” She opened a box and began to lay the ornaments out on the coffee table. “It’s my first Christmas on the ranch, and my holiday season as Mrs. Cade Maguire, and I’m looking forward to some new traditions too—like hanging the ornament Benjy gave us for our wedding gift.”
“What does it look like?” Zaylie asked.
“He drew a picture of wedding bells on a pretty white ball and put our date on it,” Retta answered.
Levi pulled out strands of lights wrapped around cardboard. “I’m a real good pack mule with these things, but I’m not worth much when it comes to gettin’ them positioned on the tree. We usually get Mavis and Skip to do this part, but maybe you could help me, Claire?”
“Be glad to,” Claire agreed.
“Why do you call them Mavis and Skip?” Zaylie frowned.
“Because I lived with them from just about the time I was born and that’s what my mother called them. Mama and Daddy just didn’t sound right even after they adopted me,” Levi explained as simply as he could.
“Am I ’dopted, Aunt Claire?”
Claire clipped the first light onto the tree. “No, you aren’t.”
“Well, rats! I can’t call my daddy Grant then?”
“I don’t think so,” Claire answered. “Why would you want to do that?”
“’Cause Levi did,” she said, and then the ornaments caught her attention. “Ohhh, look at that pretty blue one. It’s like Cinderella’s dress.”
Levi carefully unwound two feet of lights and handed them to Claire. “You work your magic, and I’ll just follow around behind you,” he said.
Even though it was a big tree, there was no way for them to do the job without their shoulders and hands continually touching. She tried to follow the conversation between Retta and Zaylie, who were talking about the different ornaments, to keep her mind from thinking about the effect that his touch had on her.
It didn’t work.
Justin was untangling the garland and doing some creative cussin’, as Franny called it when she didn’t want to say swear words in front of Zaylie. “Dratted, blasted stuff. I don’t know why we don’t throw it in the danged trash and buy new every year.”
It was amusing, but not so much that Claire couldn’t still feel the sparks flying around the room every time Claire looked up into Levi’s eyes.
Why this cowboy? And are you letting your heart lead you to this area more than your common sense? Are you aware that Sunset is a tiny place with few businesses? Grant had popped back into her head.
“I don’t know,” she said out loud.
“Me either,” Justin said. “It seems like the smart thing to do.”
“Were you really talkin’ to him?” Levi whispered.
She shook her head.
“Want to tell me who you were arguing with?”
“Nope, let’s just get these lights on here,” she answered.
“Okay folks, that’s the first string of lights,” Levi said when they finished. “Retta, you and Cade want to do the next round?”
Yes, please say yes, Claire thought as she touched her shoulder to see if it was on fire. Then suddenly she changed her mind. No, let us do another strand.
“Looks to me like y’all are doin’ a good job, so keep it up,” Retta answered. “This is my first time to see all these pretty ornaments, and Cade is telling me what he remembers about each one.”
“Okay, then.” Levi picked up a second cardboard and slipped the string of lights onto his arms. “We’ll be doing a duck walk by the time we get to the bottom of the tree.”
“You will,” Claire said. “I barely have to even bend. That’s one of the advantages of being short.”
“Something that runs in your family?” Levi asked.
“My granny was barely five feet tall, and they say I got her temper as well,” she answered.
“Oh really? I’ve seen some sass but not so much temper,” Levi said.
“You haven’t made me mad—yet.” She gave him a sideways look that said if he did he’d better watch out.
“What’s that supposed to mean—yet?”
“Just what it says.” She looked over her shoulder to find him grinning.
“It means that you should never light the fuse on a stick of dynamite unless you are ready to run.” Cade laughed.
After a few more turns around the tree, Levi plugged in the lights and Zaylie clapped her hands. “Looks like we’re ready for Retta and Cade to get the garland on the tree.”
“And then the ornaments?” Zaylie asked.
“That’s right, ladybug. Then all of us will put them on,” Justin said.
“I’m not a ladybug. I’m a princess,” Zaylie said with a giggle.
“Princess Ladybug,” Justin teased.
When everything was all finished, Levi held Zaylie up high so she could slide the star down on top of the tree, and then Cade plugged it in. It was by far the prettiest tree that Claire had ever seen. But then she’d always loved the big antique lights and ornaments. Zaylie’s little blue eyes sparkled as much as the tree did, then her energy played out. She was talking about showing her kittens the tree one minute, and the next she’d leaned over on the arm of the sofa and was sound asleep.
“Looks like it’s time to take Princess Ladybug to the bunkhouse. She’s had so much excitement, and there’s even more on the way tomorrow,” Claire whispered.
“Don’t wake her,” Levi said. “I’ll just wrap her in a throw and carry her to the bunkhouse for you.”
“I’ll get our coats,” Claire said.
I can’t believe you’re letting that cowboy do something for you. Grant was back in her head.
Would you leave it alone? It’s only carrying Zaylie to the bunkhouse. It’s not like I’m going into a partnership with him on my new business, she argued.
“Would you look at that moon?” Levi whispered when they were outside.
“Gorgeous, isn’t it?” she said softly, as she went ahead of him and opened the bunkhouse door.
Levi carried Zaylie straight to the bedroom and gently laid her on the bed. “She’s like a little rag doll. She really is worn out.”
Zaylie scarcely even wiggled as Claire removed her shoes and jacket, and got her into flannel pajamas.
“I’ve only seen her this tired a couple of times. Last Christmas was one of them. So far her dad has been able to spend the holiday with her. That’s unusual to get time off four years in a row,” Claire whispered, and tiptoed out of the room.
“I don’t know why you’re talking so quiet,” Levi said. “I don’t think a sonic boom would wake her.”
“I’m not taking any chances. If she wakes up now, she’ll be wired until midnight or after and then be cranky for church tomorrow. Seems like a decade ago that we went to chapel with Grant, and it was only last week.” Claire removed her coat and sat down on the sofa. “Would you like something to drink? Tea? Coffee? I can make a pot.”
“Not this late or I’ll never get to sleep, and then I’ll be the one who’s snorin’ in church tomorrow.” Levi shed his coat and sat down on the other end of the sofa. “You’d planned to go to Randlett tomorrow, but now that you’re stayin’ until Wednesday, is there a reason you should go twice?”
“I have several quilts I need to mail, but they can wait until Wednesday or Thursday,” she said.
“I’ve been thinkin’ that maybe you should go tomorrow.”
“Oh really?” Claire’s heart dropped. After that kiss and the offer to keep Zaylie, she’d thought maybe he wanted her to stay a while longer.
“It’s like this,” he explained. “If Zaylie spends a few hours there, it won’t be as tough on her when you leave on Wednesday. We could pick up those quilts you need to mail and kind of make it a road trip. I don’t have anything to do tomorrow afternoon after church, and I’m glad to drive y’all up there.” He paused and went on. “And I bet they’ve got cell service up there, so maybe Zaylie could have some FaceTime with her dad. That would help with the transition from here to there. She just about broke my heart today when she cried. I don’t think I could stand it if she sobbed like that when y’all leave.”
Claire felt a little better after he’d explained. “That sounds like a good idea. I could bring the boxes that need mailing down here and get them out on Monday. And it might help with leaving. If I send Grant an email he might be able to arrange things so he can talk to her while we’re there.”
“Has your brother ever thought of remarrying?” Levi asked.
She shook her head. “He loved Haley so much that I’ve always thought he’d never even date again, but…”
“But what?” Levi asked.
“There was something about him this time when I was down there in San Antonio, and when he called last time, he said that Zaylie might have two of the kittens if y’all were giving them away.” She turned around to face him and drew her legs up on the sofa to sit cross-legged.
“Why would that be different?” Levi asked.
“His voice sounded happier this time, and he’s never even considered pets for Zaylie,” she answered. “I’m wondering if there might be a woman in his life.”
“Hmmm—Haley, Zaylie. Was that by chance or on purpose?”
“On purpose. My brother is Grant Zane so they combined the two names,” she said. “What’s your full name?”
“Levi Robert Jackson. Robert is Skip’s real name. And yours?”
“Claire Amanda,” she said. “Nanny’s name was Amanda Pauline.”
“How is it going to affect you if your brother does remarry?”
“I’d be happy for him, but by damn, the new wife better be good to Zaylie, or I’ll yank all her hair out and then shoot her,” Claire said without a moment’s hesitation.
“I’ve only known that little girl less than a week and I’d be right behind you.” Levi yawned. “Guess that’s my cue to go home. It’s been a long day for all of us.”
They stood to their feet at the same time. He picked up his coat, and she walked him to the door.
He slipped his arms into his coat and zipped it up.
“You’ve never had girlfriends, as in friends, not romantically involved?” she asked.
“Nope, is that what we are? Just friends?” He bent slightly and brushed a sweet kiss across her lips.
She’d been kissed before—she’d been in a relationship that lasted almost a year. But there was something about Levi’s kisses that made her imagine tangled sheets and sweaty bodies.
“I think when kisses are involved, it’s called friends with benefits.” She smiled up at him.
“And I thought when used that way you spelled benefits S-E-X.” He kissed her on the forehead.
She shoved him toward the door. “You need to go outside and cool off.”
“Good night, Claire.” He chuckled.
“Good night, Levi.” She shut the door and slid down the backside of it.
He’d said that her kiss was like a taste of heaven. She felt like maybe his was more like dragging her down into the sinful pits of hell.