True to his word, Steve called every night that week. On Friday afternoon, he drove to Tracy’s house, and they took her car to the airport in San Antonio. It was odd that she missed him so much when they were apart, because they’d been dating less than a week, but she remembered how it had been in high school, when he’d filled her every thought.

“So Heather got married when? January?” Steve asked.

“December. They had a Christmas wedding.” Tracy carefully changed lanes as they drove through Austin on I-35.

“Was it here? How did I miss there was a McClain wedding happening?”

“It was here. It was around the time when your dad was in the hospital, though, so I think that’s probably why you missed it. It was a quick wedding. They planned it all in two weeks.”

“She wasn’t pregnant, was she?”

Tracy laughed. “Everyone always asks that. No, she wasn’t pregnant. She was just ready to live in the same state as the man she loved.”

“I can see that. Is her husband coming down with her?”

“No, he didn’t want to spend that much time away from the ranch. He was here for over a week in November, and his brother ended up getting hurt running both ranches, so he will stay where he is this time. Michael’s a good guy, but it’s really Heather who needs to be here for the graduation and wedding.”

“Yeah, that makes sense to me. Does she know I’m going to be with you to pick her up?”

“Nope. She doesn’t. She’ll figure it out when she gets there, I guess.” Tracy debated for a moment but decided to tell him about her sister’s power. “Remember how I told you that all of us got strange powers from the zap?”

“Yeah?” Steve remembered every word of that conversation. She’d not mentioned any of it since, and neither had he, but he really hadn’t been able to stop thinking about it. If he married her, would his kids have strange powers, too?

“Well, Heather’s power is that she can see when a couple should be together. She said there’s something about their hues or auras that blend together to make them compatible or not. So, she’s going to have something to say about the two of us, whether we want to hear it or not.”

“Will she tell you in front of me? Or when you’re alone?”

“She doesn’t know that you know about the powers, so she’ll wait until we’re alone. She doesn’t even know we’re dating. It’s so new, and I haven’t spoken to her in a couple of weeks.”

“You didn’t even confirm the flight?”

“Nope. We just knew we were going to do it this way, and she knows I’m dependable. Mom called and confirmed this morning to make sure I was still taking off work to go get her. Dad had a conference in Austin today, and Mom doesn’t like driving into San Antonio, so it was up to me.”

“None of your other sisters could do it?”

“Who? Rebekah’s getting ready for med school. Jessica is planning her wedding. Gaylynn is planning her wedding. Candice is busy being Candice. Marti is sleeping off exams. Nope, it’s up to me today.”

“Well, I’m glad it is, because it gave me an excuse to be with you. It’s been since Monday, and I was missing you desperately! I’ve only eaten Hungry Man dinners since I last saw you. I need a real meal!”

“Are you only dating me because I can cook?”

Steve laughed. “Of course not. I didn’t know you could cook until after we were dating. Of course, now that I know you can cook, I’m going to take advantage of it.”

“What did you eat when your dad was still alive? Did he cook?”

“Oh, sure. He cooked two Hungry Man dinners every night.” Steve shrugged. “I was raised on them!”

“I see. Some family tradition. I need to teach you to cook.”

“Or marry me and cook for me!”

“Umm . . . we’ve been dating for less than a week. It has to be at least two weeks before I can agree to marry you. That’s the law or something.”

He frowned. “I’m not so sure about that being the law, but whatever. I can wait a week for the proposal, I guess.” He had his mother’s engagement ring in his pocket, and he planned to ask at the first opportunity. The first decent opportunity that was. He wasn’t going to really ask her while they were driving fifty-five miles per hour down the interstate. High speed engagements weren’t all they were cracked up to be.

When they got to the airport, they parked in the short-term parking and checked the gate to see where to go and wait for Heather. Some people preferred to wait outside, but Tracy’s family had always met their family member at the gate. It felt so much more personal.

After going through security, they went and sat at the gate to wait. “We’re thirty minutes early. Sorry about that. I didn’t time it as well as I thought I had.”

“Way better to be early than late. And you never know what it’s going to be like at this time of day.”

“That’s true.” Tracy watched the tarmac, hoping her sister would land early. “I bet Heather is going to be desperate for Mexican food when she gets off that plane. She told me that the Mexican food in Idaho leaves a lot to be desired.”

“That would make sense. I can’t imagine there would be good Tex-Mex in Idaho.”

“According to Heather, Tex-Mex doesn’t exist in Idaho at all. They have Taco Bells and call it Mexican food, and there’s not even a Taco Bell near her. She’s in a tiny little town in the middle of nowhere.”

“That’s sounds like she lives near us,” he said, making a joke about a neighboring town called Nowhere.

Tracy grinned. “It really does, doesn’t it?”

“Yup.” He nodded toward the tarmac. “I think her plane just landed.”

Tracy got to her feet. “I know they will be a minute before they disembark, but I can’t wait!” She walked forward, so her sister would be sure to see her as soon as she was off the plane.

Steve stood up to be beside her, watching for the girl he’d known his whole life. When she finally stepped off the plane, the first thing he noticed was her rounded belly. He gaped at her. Did Tracy know? Glancing at Tracy’s face, he could see she didn’t. Well, there was a surprise for the whole family.

Tracy hurried forward and hugged Heather. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

Heather laughed softly. “I thought it would be a fun surprise for everyone when I got here.” She patted her stomach. “I’m due in October. I feel huge.”

Tracy thought Heather looked like she was more like eight months pregnant than five. She stepped back. “You remember Steve?”

Heather’s eyes rounded. “I do remember Steve.” She looked back and forth between the two of them, a slow smile curving her face.

“He offered to ride with me to pick you up. I hate driving through that traffic alone.”

“I don’t blame you,” Heather said, smiling. “Muir is so small that it’s hard to drive into any kind of city. I flew out of Salt Lake City and was completely overwhelmed by all the traffic.”

Tracy linked her arm with her sister’s. “Let’s go get your luggage. I’m assuming you want Mexican for supper?”

“Yes! All the Mexican.” Heather glanced at her sister. “And I’m totally craving your Irish nachos. I can taste them!”

“I’ll make sure you get them at least once while you’re here.” Tracy realized then her sister didn’t know her big news. “My offer was accepted on the building for the pub this week.”

“Are you kidding? That’s wonderful! I didn’t know you’d gotten that far. When do you think you’ll open?”

“I’m planning for October first. So around the time you give birth!”

Heather laughed. “That will be a big month for both of us. Am I still staying with Mom?”

“Yeah, I told her you could stay with me, and she said there was no way. She wants you all to herself.”

“Well, until tomorrow night when she’s doing Marti’s laundry.”

Tracy sighed. There was something very wrong with their youngest sister. “Definitely. Mom is going to be so excited when she sees you! Oh, and Gaylynn and I told her our big secret on Sunday.”

“You did?” Heather looked at Steve. “I guess he knows, too?”

Tracy blushed. “I had to tell him after I fixed his remote control the other day.”

“I see. Does he know what my power is?”

Tracy nodded. “I told him that on the way here.”

“Sounds good. So tomorrow is graduation and next Saturday is the wedding. Are we doing a sister night on Friday night to celebrate the brides?”

“Definitely! I can’t wait. I figured we’d do it at my house. We’ll rent a musical. Since Lillian is going to join us, I thought Seven Brides for Seven Brothers since she’s obsessed.”

“Is she pregnant yet? They’ve been married for weeks!” Heather grinned at her sister.

“Not that they’ve announced, but we all know it’ll be soon. That line of the family doesn’t have the ability to put off babies. Neither do you from what I can see.”

Steve walked along behind the sisters, grinning at their banter. He had always envied large families, and he desperately wanted to be part of this one. And not just because he was head over heels in love with Tracy. Something about them made him feel welcomed in a way he never had before.

He stopped walking in the middle of the airport. Head over heels in love? Where had that come from? He hadn’t realized.

He hurried to catch up after a minute, realizing they hadn’t even noticed him lagging behind. He knew he wanted to marry Tracy, but he was in love with her? He hadn’t quite realized that yet, though he wasn’t sure why they hadn’t seemed connected to him. Maybe he’d lost his mind along with his heart!

When they got to the turnstile, the suitcases were already coming out, and Heather pointed to hers. Steve grabbed it for her and set it on the floor. “Is that the only one?”

Heather nodded. “Yeah, I might have to ask Mom to do my laundry once while I’m here.”

Tracy laughed. “She’s going to start sewing a baby quilt as soon as she sees you. She’ll be mad that we won’t know if it’s a boy or girl.”

“I wonder if Rebekah will be able to tell? I hope so! I would love to be able to prepare, knowing what I was having!”

Steve looked between the sisters. “What’s Rebekah’s power?”

Heather smiled. “She can diagnose people the way Tracy can diagnose things. Cool, huh?”

“So she might be able to tell! Has she tried on anyone yet?” Steve was astounded by all the powers the sisters had.

The two sisters looked at each other, and both shrugged. “The powers are still new enough that we don’t really know what all they encompass,” Tracy said. “I think she might be able to tell, but I really don’t know.”

“That’s cool.” Steve kept walking, his mind now thinking about all the powers the sisters had. They had seemed so small at first, but when he thought about each of them having a different one . . . well, it was of a much larger magnitude than he’d thought in the beginning.

He put the suitcase in the trunk of the car, and he folded his long legs into the backseat. He wasn’t about to make a pregnant woman sit in the back. As soon as Heather got in, she slid the seat as far forward as it would go. “Do you have enough room?”

“Yeah, but you could come back an inch or two if you needed to.”

“I have short legs. I’m good!” Heather looked at her sister. “How did I forget that Texas was so hot?”

“It’s only May! What are the temperatures like in Idaho?” Tracy laughed.

“It was snowing when we left for the airport . . .”

Tracy laughed. “Welcome home, sis.”

“I already miss Idaho. Surprising, huh?”

“You mean you miss your new husband . . .”

“That too,” Heather said with a grin. “Married life has been good to me.”

“How’s the new dance school? Do you have a lot of students?”

“Not as many as I had here, but this area is more populous. The students I have are a lot of fun. We had our spring recital last week, and it was crazy. One of my two-year-olds almost danced off the stage. I jumped up and put my hand in front of her to keep her from falling. There were lots of cheers.”

Tracy laughed. “Sounds like it was a success.”

“For my students and their parents, it really was. All the moms were so proud of their little girls. It was a lot of fun.”

“No boys?”

“Not even one. I’m working on it!”

“Good. Boys should be able to dance, too.” Tracy pulled out onto the highway. “Do you want to stop to eat here or Austin? Or go home?”

“I want Comida or Taco Hut. Nothing else will do!”

Steve and Tracy both said, “Comida!” at the same time, causing Heather to laugh.

“I guess we’re having Comida,” Heather said. “I knew I had to have it at least once while I was here, so tonight is it.”

“Should we get Mom before we go?” Tracy asked.

“Nah. We’ll eat, and then you can deliver me.” Heather looked at her sister. “Now how long have you and Steve been dating?”

“A week. He bought a truck from me last weekend, and we reconnected.”

“I know you two were good friends in high school. Haven’t you hung out since?”

Steve answered for them. “Not really. Tracy’s been working and going to school, and I’ve been dealing with my dad. He died last month.”

“Oh, I’m sorry!”

“Thank you.” He said nothing else, because there was nothing else to say. Even though the man had been difficult, he had been his father. He’d done the best he knew how to do after his mother died, and the two of them had come to a truce before his death.

“Steve is running the ranch now. And he has new kittens!” Tracy knew that Steve would want the subject changed as soon as possible.

“Oh, kittens!” Heather smiled. “I want to see the kittens!”

“I’m not sure I’ll be able to pry you away from your mother from the way Tracy talks, but if you have time, I’d be glad to show them to you,” he told her.

“Thanks! You’re right, though. I doubt there will be time.” Heather sighed. “It’s going to be a long, busy week.”

“But a good one, I hope.” Tracy was excited about the wedding. And there would be a graduation party the next day. Why was this time of year always so busy?