CHAPTER FIFTY
The Ranch
“You could’ve warned me,” I said as I closed the den doors to give us privacy.
“I like the element of surprise,” Grampy said as he took a seat on the sofa.
“You want a drink?” I asked.
“Sure,” he said. “The scotch.”
I nodded and went to the bar cart and poured him three fingers of scotch.
“Where are you staying?” I asked as I closed the decanter and brought him the crystal glass.
“No idea. I just got on the first flight I could find and here I am.”
“Here you are,” I murmured, sitting down next to him.
He took a sip of scotch. “That woman has good taste.”
“You looked like you wanted to wring her neck,” I said in amusement.
He didn’t smile. “You and I have a lot to talk about. I’vebeen traveling for the past sixteen hours and unfortunately for you I’ve been using that time to stew. So, you talk, and I’ll listen.”
“You promise?” I asked.
“I promise,” he said. “Why didn’t you tell me you wanted to move to Huckleberry Hill and open a bookstore?”
“Because I wasn’t sure that I did,” I said. “I came here and things started happeningso fast. Salem and Hadley were quite vocal about me staying forever. And then Lucy rented me the apartment over her vacant storefront, and it just sorta . . . came about.”
“Lucy?”
“She owns General Merc,” I explained. “She and Muddy are good friends. And they . . . well, Muddy knew, I guess.”
“Knew what?”
“She nudges people in certain directions. I don’t know how she does it, but she always seems to know what people need before they need it. And she knows things before you do, too.”
He was silent, and I noticed his hands wrapped around the crystal glass. They were gnarled with age, but he was still strong, and his mind was as sharp as ever.
“So, you’re pregnant,” he stated.
I winced and felt my cheeks heat. “Yes. Muddy told me I was and then the hospital confirmed it . . .”
“Muddy again,” he muttered as he took a sip of his scotch.
“Please, don’t be upset. You’re on sabbatical this semester, but you’d always planned to go back to teaching. I couldn’t bear the thought of leaving New York and being so far away from you, permanently. So, I . . .”
“Decided not to face it,” he finished.
“Yeah.” I sighed. “And then I met Brooks and we . . . It was fast. It’s all been so fast. He was just another reason to stay.”
“Notthereason, right?”
I shook my head. “I decided to open the bookstore before Brooks and I were even . . . together.”
“Together,” he said, gesturing to my ring finger. “Bullets have left guns slower.”
