A Family After All

“You know most guys are not like that.”

“No. I don’t.”

“Well.” Allison shrugged, and her expression turned teasingly superior. “One day you will. So I’ll see you around what? Seven?”

Ivy hoped like hell she’d have her chores done by then. “Tuna sandwiches okay?”

Allison considered. “Got pickles?”

“Bread and butter, baby.”

“Then you’re on.”

Ivy watched Allison’s car until it disappeared around a bend in the driveway. Once it did, she let her body sag and closed her eyes.

She’d have to do a better job hiding her feelings. It wasn’t fair to Allison, Joe or anyone else. Ivy was the one with the problem. Her friends shouldn’t have to walk on eggshells around her because of it.

The equipment shed on the other side of the free-stall barn suddenly belched out a loud growling sound. Dell, checking out the tractor. Time to get back to work. Slowly, she turned back to the Bobcat and couldn’t help wondering how she’d manage to get it all done. Once she finished pushing manure, she had to check on her injured cow, conduct an inventory, call in an order and make an appointment with the nutritionist, who regularly adjusted the mix she fed her stock. Then the feeding and milking would begin all over again. And somewhere in there, she had to find time to buy groceries.

As much as she loved the farm, she couldn’t help wondering, every now and then, if she should have just sold it eight years earlier, after the cruise ship her parents were traveling on sank off the coast of Santorini. Seemed Ivy was still trying to prove she was capable of more than her mom and dad had ever given her credit for.

And still trying to make up for the mistakes she’d made.

She dragged in a breath and hesitated. More noisy rumbling, this time coming from behind her. Ivy turned and blinked. That was a school bus lumbering up the driveway.

Oh, God.

Apparently she had a tour today.

Her heart thudded dully, and it suddenly hurt to breathe. Two days without Wade and already she was falling apart. She’d thought she could manage. Why couldn’t she manage?

She had to manage.

She rolled her shoulders up and back, shifted a grimace into a smile, and headed for the bus full of laughing, chattering children.

* * *

THE NEXT DAY, Ivy hit her sleep-deprived stride. With a carefully crafted regimen of coffee, chocolate and the occasional ten-minute catnap, she figured she could handle being two men down, at least until she collected some serious prospects for Wade’s job. So far her only applicant was the manager of a fast-food restaurant in Erie, who’d worn dress shoes and a silk tie to the interview. He’d had all kinds of nifty ideas for upgrading her recordkeeping, but the instant he set foot in the dairy barn, the dry heaves had started. He hadn’t realized the position would be so hands-on, he’d explained.

“Feet-in,” she figured he’d meant. But what did he expect from a building full of digesting Jerseys?

She was hunched over her laptop in her office, updating her animal healthcare records and trying not to visualize Seth with Olivia Duncan, when the doorbell rang. Woot! Dinner had arrived. No way could she face another tuna sandwich, no matter how much fun she and Allison had had the night before.

Ivy hurried to the door, her socks pulling her into a slide the last few feet. She tugged Liz Early inside and gave her a one-armed hug, careful not to bump the bag of goodies her friend carried.

“Oh, my God, that smells divine.” She led Liz into the kitchen and patted the table. While Liz set the plastic bag down and struggled to untie the handles, Ivy produced a pair of scissors and snipped the knot right off. One by one she pulled out the warm containers, so excited by the freedom of not having to drag something together for dinner that she gave Liz another hug.

“You’re a sweetie for delivering,” she said. “Especially on a Saturday. I owe you one. Dell does, too. I made him two grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch today and I thought he was going to break into tears.”

No response. Ivy looked up to find Liz staring, hand over her mouth.

“Jeez, Ivy,” Liz breathed. “What happened to your eye?”

Ivy winced. “I’ve been avoiding the mirror. How’s it look?”

“Painful. Did you put anything on it?”

“A bag of frozen Brussels sprouts.”

Liz’s expression graduated from dismayed to horrified. “Brussels sprouts? You don’t actually eat those, do you?”

“A couple of years ago, when June Catlett was on her underappreciated-foods kick, I promised her I’d give them a try, but I’ve never been able to work up the courage.”

“I remember that. She came into Snoozy’s hoping we’d add cardoons to the menu.”

“What the heck are cardoons?”

“They’re like artichokes, only you eat the stalks. Snoozy never had any on hand, but there they were, on the menu. Luckily, no one ever ordered them.” She leaned in for a closer look at Ivy’s eye. “How’d you do it?”

“I tripped in the milking shed. Ended up with a face full of wall.”

Liz hissed in a sympathetic breath. “You’re lucky it wasn’t worse.”

“Oh, I have plans for this eye. If Dell calls in sick tomorrow because he can’t face another grilled cheese, I’ll moan and groan and lay it on thick. I’ll describe in vivid detail the purples and greens. If that doesn’t work, I’ll tell him we’re having Snoozy’s chili for lunch. He’ll be here before I hang up the phone. Thanks again for the special delivery.”

Liz offered a smile that didn’t carry her usual glow. Ivy wanted to kick herself. Even with one good eye, she should have noticed it sooner.

“Snoozy recruited someone to cover for me while I’m gone, so it’s no problem,” Liz said. “He was thrilled to get your order. He pretty much emptied the pot. I haven’t seen him grin so big since Mitzi came home.”

“How’s that working out, by the way? Having her enclosure right there in the bar?” Ivy fished her checkbook out of her purse.

“Freaked me out at first. But I’m used to it now. It’s not like she moves around much, and as long as I don’t have to watch her eat, I’m good. Besides, ever since Snoozy put that sign out front advertising his python petting zoo, business has definitely picked up. More customers means more tips, so I’m stoked.”

Uh-huh. Ivy kept one eye on Liz as she ripped the check free. “You don’t look stoked.”

Liz accepted the check and flushed. “That’s quite a tip.”

“You did me quite a favor. Saved me a lot of time and heartache.” She tapped the nearest carton. “It’s the heartburn that’s really going to cost. But it’ll be so worth it.”

Liz tucked the check into her jacket pocket. “Do you have a few minutes? I was hoping we could talk. I know you’re busy...”

“Never too busy for you.” Ivy gave herself a mental pat on the back for sounding as if she meant it. She pushed the cartons aside, pulled out a chair for Liz and plopped down onto its twin. “Can I get you something to drink? Coffee? Wine?” Oh, damn. She didn’t have any wine.

Liz shook her head and shrugged out of her jacket. Ivy shoved the cartons a little farther away. Did they have to smell so damned good? She glanced around the kitchen, desperate for a distraction from the spicy siren call of the chili. The forlorn look on Liz’s face did the trick.

“What’s going on?” Ivy asked gently.

“It didn’t work.”

“What didn’t work?”

Liz bit her lip. “Marcus. Me. Sex.”

Ivy grimaced. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

Liz stumbled through a laugh. “No need to look so horrified. I didn’t suddenly find out he’s gay or into BDSM. He didn’t fail to perform or anything. We never got that far. He blew up at me for pressuring him, then said he thought it was time for us both to move on.”

“Oh, no. Oh, Liz.” And oh, dear Lord, did that sound familiar. Ivy ignored the hollow feeling in her chest. This isn’t about you. She cleared her throat. “Did Marcus give you any reason at all for the breakup? Besides feeling pressured, I mean?”

“He told me why, but it was totally not a valid reason, and I tried to argue, but...” Liz shrugged. “When he drove me home, he didn’t say anything except to tell me to take care of myself.” Her face collapsed, and she drew in a shuddering breath. “I screwed up. I wanted to show him how much I love him, and instead I ended up chasing him away. I couldn’t even get him to kiss me.”

Ivy leaned forward. “You can fix this. Just tell him you understand. Tell him if he needs more time, he can have it.”

“I did say all that. He didn’t go for it. Even if he had, how much more time do I give him? Months? Years? If I don’t pressure him at all, then where’s his motivation to sleep with me?”

Ivy didn’t know how to answer that one. “I guess what you need to decide is how long you’re willing to wait.”

“I’m not sure that’s even an option anymore.” Liz hung her head, and her curly blond hair tumbled to cover her face. When she looked back up, her eyes had dulled. She rubbed a palm against her chest. “Ivy, he said goodbye like...like there wouldn’t be another hello.”

Ivy straightened, feeling as useless as a fork in a soup bowl. “I’m so sorry.” She’d driven Seth away like Liz had driven Marcus away. What advice could she possibly give? “Have you considered talking to Allison? She knows Marcus better than any of us.”

“I thought about it, but if he ever found out, he’d be humiliated. I couldn’t do that to him.” She tucked her hair behind her ear. Drew in a deep breath. “That’s really something, isn’t it? I mean that Allison’s going to be a mom.”

Ivy braced herself for the familiar little clutch of pain. Yep, there it was. Hello, old friend.

“I want that,” Liz said softly. “I want with Marcus what Allison has with Joe.”

An image of Seth taunted Ivy, and her ready words of encouragement faded. All she could manage was a nod.

Resignation chased the daydreams from Liz’s face. “I need to get back to work. I’m sorry to bother you with all of this.” She got to her feet and pushed the chair under the table. “Thank you again for the generous tip.”

They hugged, Ivy’s own desperation echoed in the rigor of Liz’s fingers on her back. Minutes later, she waved from her porch as the little blue car disappeared down the driveway.

Some tip.

Sorry, I can’t help you. Find someone else to talk to.

With a sigh, she shuffled back into the kitchen, grabbed two of the containers and turned to put them in the fridge.

So much for her appetite.

* * *

SETH SLAPPED HIS cards facedown on the table and sagged back against his chair. “Fold.”

“Judas Priest, Walker.” Joe shot him a disgusted look. “That’s got to be the tenth time tonight. You don’t get your act together, we’re going to boot you out of the club.”

“We can’t boot him out.” Noble brandished the remains of a sub thicker than his wrist. “He’s the only one of us who knows how to make a decent sandwich.”

Gil Cooper, owner of Cooper’s Hardware and Seth’s off-road-biking buddy, lifted his bottle of beer. “Plus he’s just now learning that a good brew isn’t supposed to look like lemonade and smell like three fat guys trapped in a two-man tent.”

“And he has a daughter who bakes.” Former marine Harris Briggs was a chewing-gum addict, an infamous grump and the part-time manager of Castle Creek Growers. He waved a chocolate chip cookie in the air. “Forget quarters. We should play for these little gems.”

Joe snatched the cookie out of the air, took a bite and shook his head at Seth. “You know what your trouble is?”

“Yeah. I’m not getting enough sleep.”

“Neither am I, but it’s not because I’m too stubborn to take what’s on offer.” Joe dodged a balled-up napkin. “I’m just sayin’. She wants you, too.”

“Who’re we talking about?” Gil didn’t realize his cards were angled for the whole table to see. There was a reason his stack of chips was shorter than everyone else’s.

Seth hesitated, then muttered, “Ivy Millbrook.”

“That’s my kind of trouble,” Gil said, and smirked when Seth glared.

“You’re going to have trouble of your own if you don’t keep your cotton-pickin’ hands to yourself,” Harris growled at Joe, who was hogging the plate of cookies.

“Now, boys, play nice.” Gil stretched across the table, knocking over three towers of poker chips and an empty beer bottle in the process. The bottle clattered off the edge and hit the linoleum with a hollow clunk. Undeterred, Gil scooped a handful of cookies off the Hello Kitty platter. He tossed a couple at Noble and sat back down. Everyone else exhaled and straightened up out of the human shields they’d formed around their own bottles and stacks.

“What about Olivia Duncan?” Noble asked through a mouthful of cookie. “She’s cute. I saw you two in Mama Leoni’s parking lot last night. How’d that work out?”

Seth scowled. “It didn’t.”

“Because it’s not Olivia keeping Seth up at night.” Joe tucked in his chin and peeked at his cards. “Now, are we going to finish this game or not?”

“He’s got something good,” Noble said, disgusted, and threw down his cards. Ignoring Joe’s bark of protest, he squinted at Seth.

“What’s up with you and Ivy? You two like each other, so why’ve you spent the past year ducking and weaving? Hit the canvas, already.”

Seth squeezed the back of his neck. “That guy she was engaged to a few years back.” He looked at Joe. “What was his name?”

“Evan.”

“Evan. Right. Apparently the bastard did a number on her, because she’s convinced commitment’s a four-letter word.”

“She’s gun-shy.” Noble nodded sagely. “I get that.” When Joe snorted, Noble spread his hands. “What? Haven’t you ever wondered why this prime piece of bachelor booty is still on the market?”

Joe checked out the big man’s bright yellow Read Books, Not T-shirts tee, which he wore with a paint-stained pair of black leather motorcycle pants and emerald green high-tops. “No.”

“I’ve been wonderin’,” Harris spoke up. When everyone stared, he flushed. “On behalf of the ladies, that is.”

“I’m no stranger to heartbreak.” Noble patted his solar plexus. “It takes a brave human being to risk that kind of pain again.”

Gil screwed up his eyes. “It takes a brave human being to risk looking directly into your outfit.” He shook his head at Seth. “I don’t get it. Sounds like Ivy wants no-strings sex. With you. What’s the problem? I’d be all over that.”

“Would you?” Seth asked softly.

Gil blanched. “The opportunity. I’d be all over the opportunity, not the lady in question.” He grabbed his beer and cocked his head. “I take it back. I’d be thrilled to hit that and you should be, too.”

Seth started around the table toward him and Gil popped to his feet. It took him two strides to get tangled up in a chair. He fell on his ass and Joe shook his head.

“You’d have to talk to her first,” Joe said. “During and after wouldn’t hurt, either. Sure you’re up for that?”

Gil offered up a silly grin as Joe helped him to his feet. “I can talk to a girl. Just ask the one I’m dating.”

“Virtual chicks don’t count,” Noble yelled.

“Neither do the ones who ask for money,” Joe added.

“Screw all of you.” Gil squinted at Seth. “You’re seriously not putting out till there’s a ring on your finger?”

“It’s not about the ring, assholes.” Seth dropped back into his chair. “It’s about commitment. I don’t want my kids to see a parade of women coming in and out of my house.”

“So don’t bring ’em home.” Harris had given up on the cookies. He fished a pack of spearmint gum from the pocket of his plaid shirt. Cellophane crinkled. “That’s what motels are for.”

“Not my motel,” Joe growled.

“Parade of women, huh?” Gil rolled his eyes. “Don’t you need a permit for an ego that size?”

Seth ignored him. “Bottom line is, I have to set an example for my kids.”

“Good for you, man.” Joe nodded solemnly. “They’ll erect a statue in your honor.”

“A special-order one.” Noble leaned forward. “With blue balls.”

Seth gave him a dirty look while Joe hooted and Gil offered Noble a sloppy high five.

“Speaking of rings—” Joe leaned back in his chair “—I’m thinking about getting one.”

Noble scratched his chin. “For your nose or your—” he raised his eyebrows at Joe’s lap “—love muscle?”

Joe blinked. “Love muscle? Seriously?”

Gil’s expression was dubious. “You going to pop the question?”

“Thinking about it,” Joe said. “Though I don’t know what I’ll do if she turns me down.”

An uneasy silence, broken by an occasional plastic chink as Gil busied himself restacking his chips. Abruptly, Joe straightened and turned to Harris.

“Harris, man, I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”

The older man waved him off. “Don’t go gettin’ your dress over your head,” he said gruffly. “Yeah, I turned Eugenia down, but I had good reason and she knows it. You get that ring. That young woman of yours won’t say no.”

Noble gave Joe an elbow to the ribs. “You planning on telling them what is going to happen, instead of getting us all worked up about what might happen?”

Seth stood and started gathering the empties. “I knew you were a little too happy about lending me your truck. What’s up, Gallahan?”

Joe leaned back and linked his hands behind his head. “It’s like this, guys.” There was no mistaking the giddy in his gaze, and Seth figured it out the instant before Joe spilled. “Allison’s pregnant.”

Shouts and backslaps followed, quickly turning into whispers and knuckle bumps when Seth warned his guests that if they woke up his kids, he’d be serving tea and cucumber sandwiches the next time he hosted poker night. Ever the librarian, Noble asked, “When you say cucumber, you talking English or Armenian?”

Joe reached for the last cookie. “Any advice for a father-to-be?” He cut his eyes at Noble. “I’m talking to those of us who have a kid, not those of us who act like one.”

Gil belched, long and loud. “That leaves us all out.”

“Hold on.” Noble folded his arms across his massive chest and watched Seth carefully set the empties in a recycling bin. “The kids are with your ex every other weekend, so why can’t you do your parading around then?”

“Because that’s not what I want,” Seth growled. He offered up a half smile and a shrug. “That’s not all I want. Besides, I won’t have her thinking I’m ashamed of her.”

With a snick, Gil popped the top of another brew. “But if she’s good with it—”

“I’m not. End of story. Now how about we turn the conversation back to our baby daddy here?”

A sob sliced through their banter. “Dad!”

For an instant, Seth went rigid.

“Daddy!”

He sprang to his feet and sprinted to his daughter’s bedroom. His heart rammed his chest as his friends thundered after him. Grace’s door was open, her room dark. Why was it dark? He slapped the light on and blinked in the sudden glare.

Grace had shoved herself back against the headboard. She sat with her knees to her chest, her small fists holding the edge of the blanket to her chin. “Someone turned out the light.” Strands of brown hair clung to her damp cheeks, and mucus dripped from her nose.

Seth strode over and gathered her close. She sobbed and trembled against his chest as he rocked her.

“Bad dream?” Joe hovered inside the door while Noble and Gil peered over his shoulder.

Seth pointed to the outlet by the door. “Her ballerina night-light’s missing.” It had been there when he’d tucked her in. She’d never have let him leave the room otherwise.

Harris came in with a glass, water sloshing onto the carpet as he stepped around books and shoes and piles of clothing. Noble followed, head craning left and right as he searched the cluttered floor. “I don’t see it. Could Travis have taken it?”

Seth was wondering the same thing.

Right on cue, his son staggered into the room, rubbing his eyes. “What’s wrong?”

“Grace’s night-light.” Seth set the water aside and held out an arm. Travis shuffled over and Seth pulled him in close, loving the feel of his son’s sleep-warmed body. “Have you seen it?”

Travis shrugged, and Seth swallowed a frustrated oath. Dammit, he was tired of things disappearing. Which one of his kids was playing games? Grace wasn’t faking her fear. Had she removed the night-light, set it somewhere and then forgotten where she’d put it?

She’d stopped crying. Seth felt her jaw move against his heart as she yawned. “Hey.” He eased her away and kissed her on the forehead. “How about we leave the hall light on for tonight and get you a replacement night-light tomorrow? Will that work?”

She nodded sleepily. Seth leaned over and kissed Travis, as well. “Okay, Tiger. Back to bed.”

“I’ll take him.” Gil took Travis’s hand and steered the little boy toward the door. “Maybe on the way you could tell me where I can find myself a pair of those killer jammies. Is that the Hulk?”

“It’s Martian Manhunter,” Travis said in a voice dripping with disgust.

While Noble picked up a doll from the floor and positioned her in a nearby chair, Joe stepped out of the room to turn on the hall light. Seth settled his daughter back under the sheets and smoothed her hair from her face.

“What if I have another bad dream?” she mumbled, eyes already closed.

“I’ll come running.”

“All of you?”

Seth grinned. “If you want.”

“I want.” She rolled over onto her side, rubbed her cheek against her pillow and fell asleep.

Two minutes later, the guys had resumed their seats around Seth’s kitchen table. Silence reigned until Gil dropped his hands to the table and exhaled loudly. “Who the hell is Martian Manhunter, anyway?”

“Member of the Justice League. Pals with Superman?” When Gil still looked lost, Noble made a tsk tsk sound. “What’d you read when you were a kid, Cooper? Trixie Belden?”

Seth glanced around the table. Someone had to say it. “Who’s Trixie Belden?”

Noble rolled his eyes. “Heathens.”

Harris’s cards lay abandoned beside him as he twisted his beer bottle in a halting circle. “Your daughter do that a lot?”

“Have bad dreams? Since the divorce, yeah. More often since these two geniuses—” Seth gestured with his beer at Joe and Noble “—found that damned python and couldn’t stop bragging about it.”

“Don’t go blaming me,” Noble protested. “Joe found her. All I did was help pull her out of the wall.”

Gil exaggerated a shudder. “It’s a wonder you two aren’t having nightmares.”

Joe waved a careless hand. “I haven’t woken up screaming in weeks. Anyway, it was Allison who found her.” He tapped a red chip against the table absently. “Parker said something once about Nat having nightmares. She said they read books together about kids conquering their fears and played flashlight tag so Nat wouldn’t be so scared of the dark.”

“Monster spray.” Harris cleared his throat and lifted his beefy shoulders in a self-conscious shrug. “When my daughter was little, we put a bottle of monster spray by her bed. Worked like a charm.”

“Judas Priest.” Joe rubbed a hand over his mouth. “I’m not ready for this.”

“You’ll be fine.” Seth lifted his beer. “To Joe. May he be a better father than he is a poker player.”

“Like that’ll be hard,” muttered Noble, and considered the crumbs on his plate. “Know what goes great with pale ale? Cheesecake.”

While Harris choked on his beer, Joe made a face. “Didn’t you get your fill at the library last night?”

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