“But I love taking care of everyone, I don’t want to leave the ranch.”
Mason laughs, “You’re not going anywhere, you’re staying with me.” He kisses my temple as I look between him and Mr. Harlow, and he walks me to his truck.
***
Light tapping on the door pulls me out of what I thought was going to be a morning nap after we got back to the ranch from the Day Center. Mason ran a bath in his bathroom and helped me get cleaned up before he put me in his bed with a kiss and told me to get some rest.
Marley opens the door and walks in with a tray of food as I push the covers back and lift my head. “Hey sleepyhead, I brought nourishment for you and my niece or nephew.” Her smile is wide, and she walks slowly as she watches the tea in the tall glass come close to sloshing over the edge.
The smell of chicken soup fills the room and my stomach growls embarrassingly loud, and my mouth starts to water. I smile and put my hand over my stomach, “I guess I’m really hungry.” I glance at the window and see that it’s dinnertime, “Did I sleep all day?” I pull myself up and lean against the large, wooden spindles of the bed.
Marley’s laugh is soft, and her eyes are sparkling, “You did, but that just means your body needed the rest.” She sets the tray over my lap; the soup looks delicious. Next to the bowl is a piece of sourdough bread and next to that is a large vitamin and a small pill.
“What’s that?” I point at the pill that looks large enough to give to one of the horses in the stables.
Marley sits on the edge of the bed and pulls my pillows up behind my back. After glancing at the huge pill, she laughs again, “That, my dear, is one of the prenatal vitamins that Mason went and bought when he got the prescription for your pain meds, he also picked up a cookbook for pregnantwomen,” she holds her fingers up like she is ticking off a list, “the What to Expect When You’re Expecting book, a magazine full of nursery furniture, and a onesie that says ‘Party, my crib at 2a, BYOB’ the last B stands for boob.” She tilts her head to the side and cocks her brow with a smirk.
My hand flies to my mouth and I cover my smile, “Oh.” That’s a good sign, and warmth spreads through my chest. I’ve barely wrapped my head around the fact that he is okay with the baby, but knowing he’s happy about it makes me sigh in relief.
She unwraps the soup spoon from the napkin and puts it in the soup as she lays the napkin in my lap with a smile, “To say he is excited is a slight understatement.”
“Oh, this smells delicious,” I pick up the spoon and take a bite and my eyes roll back in my head, “So good. Tell Opal thank you.”
She watches me eat for a minute. As fast as I am scooping the spoon to my mouth, anyone would think that I haven’t eaten in days. “I’m sorry, I’m so hungry all of a sudden.” I put my spoon down and tear off a piece of bread that is still warm.
As she leans over my legs onto her hand she smiles, “Maybe that means that I will get a nephew this time. When Sarah was pregnant with Lainey Rai, she couldn’t keep anything down, almost all food made her turn a sickly shade of green.”
Covering my mouth with the back of my hand because my mouth is full, I say, “The whole time?”
She nods, “Yep, she had to go to the doctor to get nutrients through an IV and everything. She joked and said she didn’t want to have any more babies if that was what all pregnancies were like.” Her smile falls and her eyes lose focus like she is remembering something.
Putting my bread down, I put my hand on her leg, “I’msorry.”
Her eyes flick back up to me and she puts her hand over mine, “About what? Something that no one had any control over? I remind myself all the time that we have Lainey Rai and that’s what’s important, Sarah would have said the same thing.”
“Poor Gray,” I say and sit back against the pillow.
She squeezes my fingers and says, “Mason will have my head if he finds out you’re sad, eat your dinner, and let’s talk about the future.”
“Where is Mason?” I reach for the giant pill and force it down with the minty tea that Opal made for me.
“He and the guys are taking care of loose ends, he said to make sure and tell you he may not make it back tonight, but he would see you for sure tomorrow.”
I think about all the things he bought, and I can’t stop smiling, “He does sound excited, doesn’t he?”
She nods and chuckles, “I’ve never seen my brother look at a woman the way he looks at you, he’s got it bad.”
“I didn’t think he was the relationship type when I met him in that bar, I thought it would be one night only.” My eyes widen and I hold my hand up, “But I didn’t know who he was at the time. He was just this nice guy who had a warm smile and made me feel good.
My eyes go even wider, and my face turns beet red, “Oh God, that sounded so bad. I don’t usually meet up with strange guys in a bar, after I was kidnapped, I couldn’t stand to be touched by a man.” I shrug my shoulders and trace the edge of my soup bowl with my finger, “It was different with Mason, he made me feel again, for the first time in two years It felt… right?”
“But you don’t regret it?” She squeezes my hand.
I shake my head, “Oh no. It was quite a shock when he walked into the kitchen that morning, but if it weren’t for him,I would still be running and looking over my shoulder every second, he’s picked up all my pieces and made me whole again.” I pause and try to think of the right words, “He’s one of the good ones, you know? Being with him has become… everything.” I shake my head and look down, “I sound stupid, I’ve only known him a month.”
“It doesn’t sound stupid at all, I get it.” She looks down at her fingers, “I don’t like being touched either.” Lifting her head she gives a half smile, “I tried a few years ago but it was a disaster, so you’re lucky you found your someone so soon.”
I freeze, “Only the one?” Marly was attacked her senior year of high school which was almost fifteen years ago.
