Harlequin Love Inspired March 2021--Box Set 2 of 2 by Patrice Lewis (best large ereader .txt) 📕

Ross’s favorite times were in the evenings with her and the twins. After she’d wigged out at the park yesterday, he’d worried that might change. Thankfully, it seemed that wouldn’t be the case.

The door from the store opened and Maverick stepped through. “Did you check your email, Stacia?”

“Not yet.”

“Got a message from Bandera and Fredericksburg about the tubs and coffee bar parts you inquired about.”

“Wonderful.” She sat down at the computer.

“Tomorrow, you two make a bathtub, coffee bar run.”

“What?” Stacia squeaked.

“Angel and Veronica will both be here to run the store tomorrow. I’ll handle the workshop while y’all make the trip.”

“I can stay here and work,” Ross offered, as uncomfortable with the road trip idea as Stacia obviously was.

“Y’all tiptoe around each other like an earthworm circling a prickly pear cactus. Best icebreaker I know is a road trip. And besides, Stacia will need muscle to help load the bathtubs.”

“Shouldn’t we work on what we have before we bring more in?” she reasoned.

“We’ve got plenty of room in the warehouse and running out of material will slow us down more than y’all taking a day. Besides, the dealers might deal with somebody else if we don’t jump on it. And if you wait until the weekend, you won’t have the delivery truck at your disposal.”

“I guess you’re right.” Her tone sounded as if she were facing the firing squad. “I’ll get the twins ready in the morning and get them off to school while you help Daddy feed. We’ll leave when I get back.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Ross tightened a screw. The road trip would shake things up a bit. But she looked like she might lose her lunch at the thought.

“I’ll get the kids ready for church tonight.” Maverick looked past Ross to Stacia. “Supper before or after?”

“After. I’ll give them a snack when they get home.”

“Should be any minute.” Maverick checked his watch. “Coming to church with us tonight, Ross?”

“I’d like to.”

“Anytime. At least there, y’all are on the same wavelength.” The older man headed back to the store. “Better get back to work.”

“Do you go on scavenging trips often?”

“Most of our stuff comes from Daddy’s salvage business. But from time to time, I hit other stores.”

“Sounds fun.”

“It can be.”

He could almost hear her unspoken thoughts, if you weren’t coming.

* * *

Ross followed Maverick to the livestock barn the next morning.

He had gone to Wednesday night Bible study with them last night. They were good people, well respected in the community and they genuinely loved his niece and nephew. There was no easy fix here.

How could he let his parents in on Mason and Madison’s existence while they continued to live here in Medina? His folks wouldn’t be content with long-distance grandparenting after missing out on the first five years of the twins’ lives. If only Houston was closer.

Temperatures had dipped to the mid-sixties during the night. But the sun was already hard at work, burning off the dew.

Ross knew the drill without thinking. He and Maverick tag teamed opening feed sacks, pouring grain into the long troughs.

Finished with their task, Maverick took the head while Ross took the heel, walking the seemingly endless line of cattle, counting each as they went.

At the end, they faced each other as a trickle of sweat tickled a trail between Ross’s shoulder blades.

“One hundred twenty-three cows and eighteen calves.” Maverick adjusted his hat.

“Same here.”

“A mighty fine day for everyone to behave.”

Ross was torn with dreading the road trip and being relieved all of the cattle were accounted for. If any of the livestock hadn’t shown up, he’d have spent the day riding out to find them and possibly repairing fences, which could turn into an all-day problem. Avoiding Stacia in the process.

On the other hand, the cattle needed to continue behaving themselves until the B and B order was complete. When had he started caring about the ranch and the store? He was here for the twins and he’d met Maverick and Stacia only six days ago. But since then he’d been with one or both of them most of his waking hours, and their concerns had become his.

“Let’s put out some fresh hay bales.”

The two men hoisted rectangular blocks of hay out of the barn and Ross went to work cutting the twine. The first few days, he’d tried to do all the heavy lifting and let Maverick worry about strings. But the older man obviously liked carrying his own weight. Every once in a while at the end of the day, he had a slight limp—the knee trouble Stacia had mentioned—but overall Maverick was as strong and capable as a man half his age.

“Stacia’s been through a lot.” Finished with the bales, Maverick leaned on the rail fence, facing Ross. Pain dwelled in the depths of his blue eyes.

“I’m sorry for your loss. A wife and a daughter—you’re a strong man.”

“She doesn’t need to lose anyone else. Neither do I.”

“I’ll do my best to come up with a compromise where no one gets hurt. Especially the kids.”

If Mom and Dad could visit back and forth often, everything would be so much easier. But they were four hours away with a thriving business that consumed their time. Once he told them about the twins, his parents would want to spend time with them.

Maverick shook his head. “I don’t see how you can do that. But I’ll hold you to it.”

“Fair enough.” Surely his parents wouldn’t want to uproot the twins. How had he become caught in the middle, between his family and people he barely knew? His brother’s hijinks had caused all his troubles, as usual. He should be used to it by now.

“Y’all better git.” The older man checked his watch. “And I better git to the workshop.”

“Are you sure I should go with her? I could stay here and work.”

“Nah. She doesn’t want you to go. But she’d have a hissy fit if I let you stay here alone with the kids.”

“Do