Maria was surprised by how much she did feel like one of the family as soon as they sat down at the table with the others. Natalie sat on one side of her, and Ephraim was on the other. She was included in the conversation as if everyone had known her forever.

“What do we do if Michael doesn’t like the idea of us seeing each other?” she asked softly.

Ephraim turned to her, shaking his head. “He’s been telling me since yesterday that since it was my turn to marry, I needed to hook up with you.”

“Seriously?” she asked. He’d told her that earlier, but she hadn’t believed him. The idea of telling Michael she was dating Ephraim had seemed a bit overwhelming, but it seemed that he liked the idea already. That would make things a lot easier for her.

“Seriously. I blew him off because I needed to talk to you about it, but I already knew you were mine.”

“Excuse me?” She was half-offended by his words. “I was yours?”

“What I mean is I knew that you were destined to be my bride. Not that you’d agreed to anything at all. I wasn’t trying to insinuate that I could just have you because I saw you and wanted you.” Ephraim needed to shut up, and he knew it, but he wasn’t sure how!

She sighed. “I guess your family thinks of things differently than other people. I just have to keep that in mind.”

“Good girl.” His arm went around her and he hugged her to him. For a second he worried she might not like the public display of affection, but she had kissed him with the whole world watching. She really couldn’t complain if he put his arm around her.

She started listening to the conversation then. Daniel and Claire were talking about their wedding plans. “You’ll come to the wedding, won’t you, Maria? I want all of my new sisters there.”

Maria couldn’t believe this woman already considered her a sister. If she didn’t want to get sucked into this family, she should say something immediately, because they were already considering her one of them. “I’d like that.”

Ephraim grinned. “And you’ll do Christmas morning with the cabin? Michael would be thrilled to have you there.”

“And how would Ephraim feel about having me there?”

“Like his world was complete for the first time in his life.”

Maria swallowed hard. She hadn’t expected this man to be so sweet and romantic when he spoke to her. Was this the same man who had talked to her dog just yesterday? It clicked to her then how he’d known she was diabetic. Jasper told Ephraim before he told her. No wonder he’d wanted to explain in private. She couldn’t help but wonder how the boys would feel about it.

She was mostly quiet as she ate, drinking in the conversation of the others. When she’d first gone to college, she’d still been grieving—both her parents and her brother—and she hadn’t made friends quickly. She became known as standoffish in the dorm, and she made very few friends all through school. It wasn’t really who she was, but circumstances had certainly made her seem that way.

It was a different experience for her to be sitting surrounded by people who immediately accepted her as one of their own. She was happy here—and happy was something she hadn’t felt in a long while. She didn’t know if it was the wonderful people around her, or if it was all focused on the man beside her. Either way, she wasn’t going to jump into any decisions quickly. Instead, she would take her time and make a calm, rational decision.

Partway through the meal, Daniel looked at her. “Are you up to doing the research on this condition that Hunter has? It’s going to be tough finding the information you need, and he’s going to be a real challenge to treat.”

Maria nodded. As her first patient, he would be tough, but everything from there would be easier. At least she hoped it would. “I’m ready to do whatever it takes to make Hunter healthier.”

“Good. We need him in good hands.”

“I’ll treat him the way I’d want someone else to treat Michael.”

Daniel grinned. “That’s what we want from you. Thank you.”

The conversation went back to wedding plans and Christmas traditions. “Why isn’t there a tree in the cabin yet?” she asked. It had just occurred to her she hadn’t seen one there.

“We like to go out and cut a tree on the twenty-third of December, so tomorrow. The boys will all go and help choose the one they want, and then we’ll decorate it after we get home. The boys love the tradition. Each boy also buys for each of his housemates. He can buy for other friends on the ranch, but he’s not required to,” Ephraim explained.

“And the boys get gifts? Nice ones?” Maria was worried about all the years she had only been able to send a card to Michael. She had worked while in college, but it had been barely enough to pay for her dorm room and food.

“They do,” Ephraim said. “Every year Mom makes them something. One year they each got an afghan. One year it was a pair of socks. It’s always something. They always get a couple of brand new pairs of jeans, because most of their clothes are donated by the church in town. And they each get something that suits them. Last year Michael got a football.”

“Okay. So am I allowed to bring him something?” Maria asked. She had little money, but she would get her brother a present if she was allowed.

“You are allowed,” Adam said. “But don’t waste your money this year. We have him covered. Next year get him something nice.”

Maria frowned. She knew he’d said that because he’d sensed her emotions. “I need to get him something. I’m his only living relative.”

Ephraim frowned. “I got special gifts for every boy in my house. Let’s just put both of our names on mine.” He worried about her financial situation. Adam had obviously picked up on something.

Maria squirmed, thinking about what she could give him, but then she knew what it was. There was a book of their father’s that had been special to Michael, because their dad had been reading it to him when he died. Somehow it had ended up in her possessions in a storage unit. After she finished school, she’d gone through the storage unit and found it. “I have a gift for him, but thank you.”

“You do?”

She nodded. “And it will mean more than anything I could find in any store.” Ephraim seemed to know she really had something, so he backed off. “What time should I be there Christmas morning?”

“The boys are up around seven for presents. Michael’s always up by five.”

She smiled. “I’ve always been an early riser, too. Our parents weren’t, and we spent a lot of time together in the early morning hours.”

“Feel free to come any time after five. I’m up that early as well.”

“Sick,” Gideon mumbled under his breath, but the others heard it. “No one should wake up before noon unless they absolutely have to! I hate mornings!”

No one even responded to that. They must be used to his outbursts about mornings. Maria studied him for a moment, thinking about what she’d learned earlier that day. He had the burden of his entire family on his shoulders. He was expected to marry and have seven sons. And his powers. It must be a tremendous responsibility.

Gideon seemed to understand what she was thinking, and his gray eyes met her brown. “Trust me, I’m strong. I’ve always known this would be my role in life.”

She nodded at him, glad he understood. Somehow the burden that was on Gideon had bothered her a lot. It was so much more than what his brothers seemed to have.

After the meal was over, Ephraim took her hand. “I’m going to introduce you to a few of the men who work here on the ranch. I want you to know everyone.”

The first man she met was a man named Max. He seemed to be very lost in his own thoughts. “Are you all right?” she asked.

He shrugged. “I fell in love with a girl in Idaho, and she’s moving here in about ten days. But I want her here now. Is that strange?”

“It’s not strange at all.”

“Is it too soon to tell her I love her and ask her to marry me?”

Maria wasn’t sure why he was asking her, but she could only tell him what she believed. “I don’t think it’s ever too soon. If it’s how you feel, then you should tell her!”

Max frowned. “Do you really think so?”

“I really do.”

“Okay, then tell me this…what would you think of me getting her a ring and proposing during the Christmas Eve service they do on the ranch she works on?”

“If you know she’ll be there, then go for it. It sounds very romantic to me!”

Max seemed to think about it for a minute or two. “Excuse me. I’m going to go get a plane ticket to fly to Idaho!”

“Good luck!” she called after him, turning to Ephraim with a grin on her face. “Is everyone always falling in love around here?”

“Not always. Max took the month of November off to go see one of our brothers. Max was raised here on the ranch, you see, and Mom actually raised eight boys. The eighth was an orphan left on our doorstep when I was just a baby. His name was Kevin, and he and I were three months apart. Kevin’s a pastor on a huge destination ranch in Idaho now, and that’s where Max met the love of his life.”

“That’s great! And she’s coming to work here on the ranch?”

He nodded. “She’s a social worker, and our last one ran off to get married, so we were looking for another.”

She grinned. “I think that’s wonderful.”

“I do, too. Love is certainly in the air.” His eyes met hers, and he wondered if she knew he was thinking about kissing her. She seemed to be fairly intuitive, but you never could tell for sure. “It looks like people are starting to drift off for the night. Do you want to stick around for a while? Daniel and Claire will be there, and I wouldn’t mind company.”

“I’d like that.” It was strange how much closer she felt to him, finding out they were destined to be together. She hoped that wasn’t the only reason she was attracted to him.

Ephraim walked over to Daniel and the two men stood side-by-side. Maria felt her heart flutter a little as she watched the two handsome men standing so close together. She badly wanted to just say yes, she’d marry him, even though he hadn’t asked yet. She needed to sort out her feelings first though. She wasn’t sure if she was falling in love with him, or if she was falling in love with being a member of the McClain family. She had to make sure her emotions were in the right place. Spending time with him could only help her figure things out.

When the boys saw the two men standing side-by-side, the six who lived in their cabin all drifted toward them. Maria hadn’t met them all yet, but she knew a few. She knew Jose, who had been Michael’s roommate since he came to the ranch. She knew Hunter, of course, because she’d spent a lot of time with him that day. The others she knew on sight, but she didn’t necessarily know their names.

As they walked, she fell into step beside a boy, who seemed to be younger than the others, except maybe Hunter. “Hi, I’m Maria. I’m Michael’s sister.”

“I’m Nick,” he responded, not seeming to be terribly interested in conversation.

“Are you excited for Christmas?” she asked, hoping that he’d find this an interesting topic.

Nick shook his head.

“Why not?”

He looked at her. “It’s my first Christmas without family. How could I be excited?”

“How long have you been here?”

“Beginning of October,” he said. “I hate it.”

“Really?” she asked. “Michael loves it here.”

“Michael’s parents are dead. My mom is alive.”

She winced inwardly, but didn’t comment on his rude statement. “And your dad?”

He shrugged. “Never met him. My step-dad is alive, but my mom loves him more than me.”

She was surprised that he was opening up to her so much. “I’m sorry.”

“Me too.” Nick glared at her. “I don’t know why I’m telling you this. Are you going to marry Ephraim?”

“I really don’t know the answer to that. I only just met him yesterday.”

“Yeah, you’re marrying him. Probably before New Year’s, because that’s how people do things around here. I think they put some sort of love potion in the food, and now everyone is drinking it.” He looked at Jasper, who was trotting along beside her happily. “How come you take a dog with you everywhere? I have a cat, but he stays in the cabin.”

“He’s a service dog. I have diabetes, and he alerts me if my sugar is getting too low or too high. He does a really good job, too.”

“He seems nice. I’m glad you have a dog. Does he fight with my cat?”

“No idea. I haven’t noticed if they have problems with each other, but for the most part, Jasper is very well trained. Unless the cat provoked him somehow, I think they’d be fine.”

“Well, just don’t let him hurt my cat.”

“I won’t.” Maria decided she’d need to ask Ephraim about Nick later. He seemed to have a chip on his shoulder, and she wasn’t sure why. The other boys didn’t seem to have the same problems.”

When they got to the cabin, Nick went straight to the back of the house, along with all the other boys. “Lights out is in fifteen minutes,” Ephraim explained. “Daniel and I need to supervise them.”

“All right.” Maria sat on the edge of the couch, Jasper curled up on top of her feet. She wasn’t sure why, but that was his favorite place to sleep, and she wasn’t about to complain. At the moment, he made her feel a lot less uncomfortable. She looked over at Claire. “So you’re a cook here on the ranch?”

“Yeah. I cook for the men in the bunkhouse.”

“That’s really sweet. Do you enjoy it?”

Claire nodded. “The people that live on this ranch are special. They believe love can fix everything, and after being here for a little while, I think I believe it too.”