“Let’s find a phone that works,” Ned suggested, not for the first time. His brother had harped on that for the last half hour. Their cell phones were useless out here. But it wasn’t as if there was a phone booth sitting on the side of the road just waiting for them to appear.
“Okay, you find one, Ned, and I’ll be more than happy to pay for the call.”
Ned didn’t respond, which was definitely for the best.
“What we need is a sign,” Mel said.
Linc bit off a sarcastic comment. They needed a sign, all right, and it had better be one from heaven. He could only imagine what Mary Jo must be thinking. By now his sister probably figured they’d abandoned her, yet nothing could be further from the truth.
“What’s that?” Ned suddenly cried, pointing into the distance.
“What’s what?” Linc demanded.
“There,” Mel said, leaning forward and gazing toward the sky.
Linc saw a flash of light. He pulled over to the side of the road and climbed out of the truck. He needed to stretch his legs, anyway, and the cold air would revive him. Sure enough, someone was setting off fireworks. The sky burst with a spectacular display of lights.
“Wow, that was a big one,” Mel said, like a kid at a Fourth of July display.
His brothers didn’t seem to appreciate the gravity of their situation. “Okay, it’s nice, but how’s that going to help us?”
“You said I should find a phone,” Ned reminded him.
“Whoever’s setting off those fireworks must have a phone, don’t you think?”
“Yeah, I guess,” Linc agreed. He leaped back into the truck, his brothers with him. “Guide me,” he shouted and jerked the transmission into drive.
“Turn right,” Ned ordered.
“I can’t!”
“Why not?”
“I’d be driving across someone’s pasture, that’s why.” Obviously Linc was the only one with his eye on the road.
“Then turn as soon as you reach an intersection,” Mel told him.
Linc had never liked taking instructions from his younger brothers and he gritted his teeth. As the oldest, he’d always shouldered responsibility for the others. He had no choice now, however—not that things had worked out all that well with him in charge.
At the first opportunity, Linc made a sharp right-hand turn, going around the corner so fast the truck teetered on two wheels. It came down with a bounce that made all three of them hit their heads on the ceiling. “Now what?”
“Pull over for a minute.”
“Okay.” Linc eased to a stop by the side of the road.
“There!” Mel had apparently seen another display in the heavens. “That star!”
“Which way now?” Linc asked with a sigh.
“Go straight.”
Linc shook his head. The road in front of him was anything but straight. It twisted and curved this way and that.
“Linc,” Mel said, glaring at him. “Go!”
“I’m doing the best I can.” He came to a straight patch in the road and floored the accelerator. If anyone had told him he’d be chasing around a series of dark roads, desperately seeking guidance from a fireworks display, he would’ve laughed scornfully. Him, Mr. Great Sense of Direction? Lost? He sighed again.
“We’re getting close,” Mel said.
“Okay, stop!” Ned yelled.
Linc slammed on the brakes. The three of them jerked forward and just as abruptly were hurled back. If not for the seat belts, they would’ve been thrown headfirst into the windshield.
“Hey!” Mel roared.
“Maybe don’t stop quite so suddenly,” Ned added in a voice that was considerably less hostile.
“Sorry.”
“Wait, wait, wait.” Mel cocked his head toward the sky. “Okay, continue down this road.” Mercifully it was flat and straight.
“Here,” Ned said a minute later.
Once more Linc slammed on the brakes, only this time his brothers were prepared and had braced themselves.
“Look!” Ned shouted. “This is it. We’re here!”
Linc didn’t know what he was talking about. “We’re where?”
“The Harding ranch,” Mel answered.
Then Linc saw. There, painted on the rural route box, was the name Cliff Harding. To his left was a pasture and a large barn.
“I think I see a camel,” Linc said. He’d heard about people raising llamas before but not camels.
“Are you sure?” Ned mumbled. “Maybe it’s just an ugly horse.”
“A camel? No way,” Mel insisted.
“I say it’s a camel.” Linc wondered if his brother’s argumentative nature had something to do with being a middle child. Ned, as the youngest, was usually the reasonable one, the conciliator. Whereas he—
“A camel?” Mel repeated in an aggressive tone. “What would a camel be doing here?”
“Does it matter?” Ned broke in. “This is where Mary Jo’s waiting for us.”
“Right.” Linc turned into the long driveway that led to the house and barn. The fireworks had stopped, but some kind of party seemed to be taking place, because the yard was filled with people. There was a bunch of little kids running around and the atmosphere was festive and excited.
“There’s an aid car here.” Ned gestured urgently in its direction.
“Do you think someone’s hurt?” Mel asked.
“No,” Linc said slowly, thoughtfully. This was what he’d feared from the first. The minute he’d heard about Mary Jo’s dizzy spell he’d suspected she was about to give birth. “I think Mary Jo might have had her baby.”
“But she isn’t due for another two weeks,” Mel declared.
Ned opened the truck door. “Instead of discussing it, let’s go find out.”
A middle-aged woman approached as Linc got out of the truck. “You must be Mary Jo’s brothers,” she said. “I’m Grace Harding. Merry Christmas!”
The woman looked friendly, and Linc appreciated the pleasant greeting. “Merry Christmas to you, too. Sorry for the delay….”
“We got lost.”
How helpful of Mel to point out the obvious.
“Some guy named King gave us the wrong directions.”
“King’s Gas and Grocery?” A man came up to them, extending his hand. “Cliff Harding.”
“That’s the one,” Ned answered.
Cliff pinched his lips together, but didn’t speak.
Linc shook hands with Grace’s husband. “Linc Wyse,” he said, introducing himself. “My brothers, Ned and Mel.”
Hands were shaken and greetings exchanged all around.
“We were wondering if you were ever going to find the place,” Cliff told them.
“If it hadn’t been for the fireworks, we probably wouldn’t have,” Mel admitted.
Linc ignored him and glanced at the aid car. “Mary Jo?” He couldn’t bring himself to finish the question.
Grace nodded. “She had the baby.”
“A boy,” Mel said confidently. “Right?” His eyes lit up with expectation.
“A girl.”
“A girl?” Linc was shocked. “Mary Jo had a girl?”
“You sound disappointed,” Grace said, studying him closely.
“Not…disappointed. Surprised.”
Ned felt obliged to explain. “For some reason, we were all sure she was having a boy.”
“Well, she didn’t. You have a niece.”
“We have a niece,” Linc said to his brothers. Mel gave him a congratulatory slap on the back that nearly sent him reeling. He suddenly realized what this all meant. He was an uncle. He hadn’t thought of himself in those terms until that very moment.
“The EMTs are bringing Mary Jo and the baby down now,” Grace was saying.
“Can we see the baby?” Linc asked.
“And talk to Mary Jo?” Mel added.
Grace warmed them with a smile. “I’m sure you can.”
A little boy raced up to h
er. “Grandma, Grandma, can I play my drum for the baby and Mary Jo?”
Grace crouched down so she was eye level with her grandson. “Of course, Tyler, but remember you have to play quietly so you won’t disturb the baby.”
“Okay!”
Two EMTs rolled Mary Jo toward the aid car on a gurney.
As soon as she saw her brothers, Mary Jo—holding the sleeping newborn in one arm—stretched out the other. “Linc, Mel, Ned…oh, my goodness, you’re here!”
They hurried over to her side.
“You had a girl,” Mel said, staring down at the bundle in her arms.
“She looks just like you,” Ned commented.
“No, she doesn’t,” Linc chimed in. “She looks like the Wyse family—like all of us.”
“And like herself,” Mary Jo said.
“I’m sorry we were so late,” Ned apologized.
“Yeah, we got lost.”
If Mel announced that to one more person, Linc might be tempted to slug him.
“Where are they taking you?” he asked.
“To the birthing center in Silverdale,” one of the EMTs answered.
“You won’t have any trouble finding it,” Cliff assured them. “I’ll draw you a map.”
“No, thanks.” Mel shuddered noticeably.
“We’d better follow the aid car,” Linc said.
“Mary Jo, we brought you gifts.”
“Thank you, Ned.” Her face softened as she looked at the three of them. “That’s so sweet.”
“We’re sorry about the things we said.” Again this came from Ned, who was more willing to acknowledge he was wrong than either Mel or Linc.
“Yeah,” Mel agreed.
Linc muttered something under his breath, hoping it would pass for an apology. He did feel bad about the way everything had gone and the pressure they’d put on Mary Jo. They hadn’t meant to. Their intentions had been the best, although he could see now that they’d gone too far. Still, he wasn’t letting David Rhodes off the hook. The man had responsibilities and Linc was as determined as ever to see that he lived up to them.
“Linc, Mel, Ned, I want you to meet Mack McAfee,” his sister said, her arm out to the EMT. “Oh, I forgot,” she added. “You guys met earlier.”
Linc nodded at the other man. So did Mel and Ned.
“Good to see you again,” Mack said. “And congratulations on your brand-new niece. Oh, and this is my partner, Brandon Hutton.”
Once more the brothers nodded.
“I couldn’t have managed without them,” Mary Jo said fervently.
Linc thanked them both. “Our family’s much obliged to you for everything you’ve done.”
“Just part of the job,” Brandon said.
“It was an honor,” Mack told them. “I have to tell you this was the best Christmas Eve of my life.”
“And mine,” Mary Jo said. She looked at Mack, and the two of them seemed to maintain eye contact for an extra-long moment.
“Now, Grandma?” Tyler stepped up to Grace, a small drum strapped over his shoulders.
“Now, Tyler.”
The youngster set his sticks in motion. Pa-rum-pum-pum-pum, pa-rum-pum-pum-pum.
Linc glanced over at the barn and saw the ox and the lamb in the paddock. They seemed to be keeping time to the drum, bowing their heads with each slow beat.
Mary Jo was right. This was the best Christmas Eve of his life. Of all their lives.
20
Mary Jo woke to find Mack McAfee standing in the doorway of her private hospital room. “Mack,” she whispered. Her heart reacted to the sight of him, pounding extraordinarily hard. She hadn’t been certain she’d ever see him again.
“How are you feeling?” he asked, walking into the room.
“Fine.” Actually, she was sore and tired and eager to get home, to be with her family.
“I brought you something.”
“You did?” She sat up in bed and selfconsciously brushed her fingers through her hair.
Mack produced a bouquet of roses, which he’d been hiding behind his back. “For you, Mary Jo.” He bowed ever so slightly.
“My goodness, where’d you get these on Christmas Day?”
He raised his eyebrows. “I have my ways.”
“Mack.”
“Oh, all right, I got them in the hospital gift shop.”
“They’re open?”
“Sort of…I saw someone I knew who had a key and she let me in.”
Mary Jo brought the fragrant flowers to her nose and breathed in their fresh scent. The vase was lovely, too. “You shouldn’t have, but I’m thrilled you did.”
“I wasn’t sure your brothers would remember to send flowers.”
Her brothers. Just thinking about the three of them, all bumbling and excited, made her want to laugh. They’d practically shoved each other out of the way last night, fussing over her and the baby. They’d been full of tales about their misadventures in Cedar Cove and the people they’d met and their near-arrest. Mel had a few comments about a meat loaf sandwich, too—and then they’d all decided they were hungry again. Their gifts of the gold coin, the perfume and the incense were on the bedside table.
When they’d arrived at the hospital, her brothers wouldn’t let her out of their sight—until the physician came into the room to examine her and then they couldn’t leave fast enough.
They’d returned for a few minutes an hour later—apparently well-fed—to wish her a final good-night and promise to come back Christmas Day. Then they’d all trouped out again.
“I stopped at the nursery to see…” Mack paused. “Do you have a name for her yet?”
Mary Jo nodded. “Noelle Grace.”
“Noelle for the season and Grace after Grace Harding?”
Mary Jo smiled, nodding again.
“I like it,” Mack told her. “The name’s just right. Elegant and appropriate.”
His approval pleased her. She didn’t want to think too closely about how much his opinion meant to her—or why. She understood that they’d shared something very special, something intimate, while she was in labor. But that didn’t mean the bond they’d experienced would last, no matter how much she wanted it to. She had to accept that Mack had come into her life for a brief period. Soon she’d go back to Seattle with her family, and he’d go on living here, in Cedar Cove. It was unlikely that she’d see him again; there was no real reason to. The thought was a painful one.
“Noelle Grace was a joy to behold,” Mack said with a grin.
“Was she asleep?”
“Nope, she was screaming her head off.”
Mary Jo instantly felt guilty. “Oh, the staff should’ve woken me. It’s probably her feeding time.”
Mack pulled up a chair and sat down beside the bed. “Nope, she just needed her diaper changed and to be held a little.”
“Did someone hold her?” The nursery was crowded with newborns and there were only a couple of nurses on duty.
“I did,” Mack admitted, somewhat embarrassed.
“You?”
“I hope you don’t mind.”
“Of course I don’t! I—I’m just surprised they’d let you.”
“Yes, well…” Mack looked away and cleared his throat. “I might’ve led the nurse to believe that Noelle and I are…related.”
Mary Jo burst out laughing. “Mack, you didn’t!”
“I did. And I have to say that as soon as I settled her in my arms, Noelle calmed down, stopped crying and looked straight up at me.”
“You brought her into the world, after all.” She probably didn’t need to remind Mack of that; nevertheless, she wanted him to know she hadn’t forgotten what he’d done for her.
The night before, she’d told her brothers that she would never have managed if not for Mack, and that was true. He’d been her salvation. She wanted to tell him all this, but the right words escaped her. Besides, she wasn’t sure she could say what was in her heart without getting teary-eyed and emotional
.
“I’m so glad you stopped by…I was going to write you and Brandon and thank you for everything.”
“It’s our job.” Those had been Brandon’s words, too, and in his case, she assumed they were true. But Mack…Dismissing her appreciation like that—it hurt. Not wanting him to see how his offhand comment had upset her, she stared down at the sheet, twisting it nervously.
Mack stood and reached for her hand, entwining their fingers.
“Let me explain,” he said. “It is part of what we agreed to do when we accepted the job with the fire department.” He paused for a moment. “But the call from you wasn’t an ordinary one.”
“How so?” she asked and looked up, meeting his eyes.
“I’ve never delivered a baby before.”
“I know. Me, neither,” she said and they smiled at each other.
“It was one of the highlights of my life, being there with you and Noelle.”
“Mine, too—I mean, you being there.”
“Thank you.” His words were low and filled with intent. He leaned forward and braced his forehead against hers. “If it’s okay with you…”
“What?” she prodded.
“I’d like to see Noelle sometime.”
“See her?”
“See both of you.”
“Both of us,” she repeated, afraid she was beginning to sound like an echo.
“As long as it’s okay with you,” he said again.
She nodded, trying not to act too excited. “If you want.”
“I want to very much.”
“I’ll be back in Seattle,” she said.
“I don’t mind the drive.”
“Or you could take the ferry.”
“Yes.” Mack seemed just as eager to visit as she was to have him come by. “When?”
She wanted him there as soon as possible. “The doctor said he’d release Noelle and me this afternoon. My brothers are picking us up at three.”
“Is tomorrow too soon?” he asked.
Mary Jo was convinced the happiness that flowed through her must have shone from her eyes. She didn’t think she could hide it if she tried. “That would be good,” she said shyly.