A Family Name (13 page)

Charlotte took a seat in the other chair,
perching awkwardly on the edge as Will stretched out. Things felt
so odd, but Charlotte couldn't put her finger on what to do to
alleviate the weirdness. Feeling silly, she set the cup down and
leaned back. The tilt of the chair forced her to recline, and
instantly she felt all of her muscles relax. The tension of the day
drained away as she settled in.

"It's beautiful out here," she commented.

"Hmmm."

Will's noncommittal response made Charlotte
glance over at him. She giggled as she noticed that his eyes had
drifted shut. The day must have worn him out. She admired the way
he was essentially living two lives; one at the college and one at
the ranch. He had picked up extra classes, and he now had three
children counting on him.

As Charlotte was contemplating Will's life,
his eyes popped open and caught her in their gaze. He blinked
sleepily, and smiled again.

"Sorry," he said, his words slightly slurred
by sleep. "Must have dozed off."

"It's okay," Charlotte replied. "You've been
so busy."

"Honestly, it hasn't felt that way since
you've been here."

Charlotte felt heat creep up her neck.
"Hopefully we'll get things sorted out before your final custody
hearing. That way—"

"I've been meaning to talk to you about
that." Will cleared his throat. "Even after I get custody, I was,
um, well, I was hoping you'd think about staying with us. We make a
good team. The kids need us, need you. Of course you don't have to
answer now. Just think about it."

"I'll stay." The words flew from her mouth so
fast that embarrassment chased in their wake. "I mean, I'll stay
for the kids. I can't imagine leaving them yet."

Will broke into a grin. "Great. That's great.
Thanks. I'm glad."

They sat together awhile longer, sipping
coffee, and watching the stars come out. Eventually the cold chased
them back inside, but Charlotte knew she was in trouble. She could
see plenty more nights spent on the wide front porch, sitting
together, watching the stars.

The knock at the door startled Charlotte.
"Just a minute."

She tried to zip her dress the rest of the
way but she had to admit defeat. Clutching the material in the
front of her dress, she opened the door a crack. Will stood out in
the hallway and Charlotte actually felt her heart stutter at the
sight of him. The crisp white shirt tucked into freshly washed
jeans made his chest and shoulders look broader than normal. His
dark hair curled damply across his forehead and over his ears. The
crinkling around his eyes as he smiled at her made her breath
catch. She couldn't deny her attraction to him, but she needed to
dig up enough resolve not to mess things up for Lexi.

"Ready to go?" Will bent the brim of his worn
Stetson between his hands.

"Actually I'm not. Would you…would you mind
zipping my dress for me? I can't reach around the back…" Charlotte
let her voice trail off as embarrassment swelled in her chest,
making it hard to breathe let alone talk.

Will eyes gave away nothing as he took a step
toward the door. "Sure thing," he said. Was his voice huskier than
normal? Or was she just imagining that?

The rasp of her zipper echoed in her ears,
and all sorts of inappropriate thoughts danced in her head. So much
for that resolve she had just told herself to muster. She turned
around slowly hoping to buy time to compose herself.

"You look beautiful." Will took a step back
as he regarded her.

Charlotte couldn't move as she shifted under
the weight of his gaze. The moment stretched on until a cry from
down the hall shattered the intensity, and brought them crashing
back to reality.

"We'd better hurry," Charlotte said, a little
catch in her voice as she tried to regain her equilibrium.

Will nodded slowly as if coming out of a fog
himself. Sierra and Lexi were glaring at each other near the front
door. Both girls looked sweet in their new, vaguely matched dresses
that Will's mother had bought them. Charlotte knew that Karen meant
well, but the girls weren't ready to get along, let alone dress as
matchy-matchy sisters.

"What's going on here?" Will asked, injecting
a note of humor into his voice. Charlotte couldn't help but think
again what a good dad Will made.

"I want to carry the purple umbrella, but she
won't let me," Sierra said, her voice wobbling.

"I got it first," Lexi propped one hand on
her hip, and held the umbrella over her head with the other. "Fair
and square. It isn't my fault she's slow. Why can't she just take
the ladybug one?"

"The ladybug one is too baby." Sierra jumped
for the dangling umbrella. "I want the purple one."

Charlotte winced as she saw the tantrum
approaching. Shane must have sensed the impending emotional storm
too because he gravitated toward Charlotte and pressed his face
into her side. She picked him up and he nestled into her
shoulder.

"I want the purple one," Sierra repeated,
stomping her foot for emphasis.

"Don't even say it," Lexi said, her voice
higher than normal. "Don't, Dad. I know you're going to tell me to
give it to her. You always take her side."

Silence descended on the small foyer. The
five of them stood in a vibrating tension that made Charlotte want
to cry.

Will's face grew serious as he knelt down by
Sierra and Lexi. "Sierra, Lexi gets to use the purple umbrella
tonight. She got here first, and that's fair. If you don't want the
ladybug one, maybe you can share the blue one with me. Those are
the choices right now. And Lexi, I don't appreciate that tone. I'll
let you off with a warning this time, but next time you'll be
grounded."

Both girls stared at him sullenly, but both
remained quiet. Will glanced up at Charlotte, and she gave him a
small nod of encouragement. He had handled it well, even if the
girls didn't agree. As he handed Charlotte an umbrella of her own,
their fingers brushed. Charlotte felt the electric thrill of a
teenager with a crush.

Rain pattered down softly as the quintet
hurried across the gravel drive that led to Will's parents' house.
Sierra forgot her anger and twirled around with the ladybug
umbrella, dancing around puddles. Lexi gripped the handle of the
purple umbrella like it was a life preserver. Every now and then
Charlotte saw her cast glances at Will that seemed neither angry
nor upset. Charlotte suspected that the girl appreciated that Will
had sided with her in the umbrella debate, and even that he had
disciplined her. Lexi craved her father's attention, and she
obviously loved it when Will acted like her dad.

Karen held the door open as the approached.
After much shaking out of the umbrellas, coats were shrugged off,
and the warmth of the house enveloped them all. Charlotte sank into
the hominess of Karen and Bill's place. The smell of roast meat and
warm pie invaded her senses, making her stomach growl and her heart
tremble. This was the sort of environment she wanted to create for
these three kids. She wanted to make a home, and not just for them,
but for herself too.

No matter how wonderful her last set of
foster parents had been, she had always felt like a temporary
visitor in their house. Maybe that's why even when she missed them
desperately she resisted the urge to call. Not that she had ever
stopped to analyze it. She just knew that what she wanted most out
of life was a home and family of her own. Even though the five of
them had only been together for a short time, she felt like that
was the path they were on.

Thinking about being on a path to building a
family with Will opened a Pandora's box of feelings that Charlotte
wasn't ready to examine. She thought it was possible that she could
work alongside Will because she liked and respected him. But she
wondered if that would be enough. Didn't she want love from a
partner? She shook off her thoughts. Tonight she wanted to enjoy
this family dinner. The future would take care of itself tomorrow.
Tonight was for now.

****

Will shook his father's hand stiffly while
his mother flitted about fussing over Charlotte and the children.
Other than a few pleasantries, Will knew that his dad wanted to
talk about the current situation with Charlotte and the children,
and Will wasn't in the mood to defend his choices. He turned away
from Bill and sought out his brothers who had ensconced themselves
in the living room.

"Yo, bro," Wyatt said by way of greeting.

Will glanced at Walker who shrugged. He
hadn't seen much of his brothers since everyone had come to live
with him. Wyatt seemed frustrated but Will was wary of asking.

"How is everyone doing?" Walker asked, his
voice quiet and serious.

Will sat down on the edge of the sofa, ran a
hand along the stubble roughening his chin, and considered his
brother's question. He sighed.

"I'm glad to have Charlotte here to help.
Lexi and Sierra fight like two wet cats in a bag," Will
admitted.

"Give them time." Walker squeezed Will's
shoulder. "And how are you doing?"

No one but Charlotte ever asked him that, and
he hadn't realized how much he'd needed to hear it. Will met his
brother's eyes. "I'm all right. Too busy, though. Now that the
weather's getting nice, I'll be bringing some classes up to work on
the dig site."

Walker nodded. "I'll let the hands know so
they don't bother you. We'll have to ride fence out that way."

"We don't have any cattle up that way do
we?"

"Better to be safe." Walker retrieved his
glass from the coffee table, and stood. "Anyone need anything?"

Will shook his head, and Wyatt remained
silent. The two sat in the living room without speaking for a
stretch too long for Will's comfort. He turned toward his younger
brother. Wyatt sat slumped back in their father's recliner. His
eyes were closed and his jaw was set in a grimace. Will realized
that something was clearly going on with Wyatt, but he had no idea
how to bridge the gaping chasm between them.

Thankfully Lexi burst into the room. "Uncle
Wyatt," she cried happily.

Wyatt cracked an eye, and a slow grin spread
across his face. "Well, if it isn't my new niece. How are you,
doll?"

Lexi giggled and threw herself down onto the
sofa beside Will. "Can we go out to the barn to see my calf before
dinner?"

"Absolutely. Let's go tell mo — I mean,
Grandma," Wyatt said, pushing himself off the chair. He cast a
glance at Will. "That sounds weird doesn't it?"

Before Will could answer, Lexi had grabbed
Wyatt's arm and was dragging him toward the kitchen. Now alone,
Will frowned as he tried to sort through his recent interactions
with his brother. He drew a blank. Nothing had seemed out of the
ordinary as they had passed during routine chores. Beyond that,
though, he hadn't seen very much of his brother as of late.

Will was still pondering when Charlotte came
into the living room with Shane and Sierra. The little girl had
forgiven him for the umbrella denial, and she climbed up onto his
lap with a book. "Will you read this to me, Uncle Will?"

While Will read, Charlotte held Shane who
seemed to be listening to the story as well. The moment felt right,
and that feeling jolted Will straight to his core. He hadn't set
out to think of the five of them as a family but somewhere over the
past few weeks that's exactly what had begun to happen. As Sierra
leaned her head on his arm, Will felt something unfamiliar shift
inside of him. He wouldn't, or couldn't, analyze this right now.
The feelings that these people stirred in him were certainly not
something he had felt before.

Bill hovered near the doorway as Will
finished the book. His father's gaze angered Will. He couldn't
explain why but that moment was supposed to be for the four of
them, their family. Yet somehow his father always managed to
intrude on it.

"Need something, Dad?" Will asked, not
looking up from the book. Instead he watched Sierra trace her
little finger around the cow at the end of the story.

"Did my daddy like cows?" Sierra asked
suddenly. The question felt out of the blue, but Will wasn't
startled by it. He had been wondering when Sierra — and Shane for
that matter — would start asking questions. This one seemed
relatively okay as an introduction.

"He liked them well enough," Will said. "He
and your mommy liked to come out here to visit the ranch."

"I like cows," Sierra said, still tracing the
animal on the page.

Will exchanged a glance with Charlotte, who
raised one eyebrow and lifted her shoulder in a shrug. When Will
looked over at his father, the older man was frowning. Irritation
flooded Will again. Whatever his father was thinking, Will really
didn't want to know. Still, he felt compelled to ask.

"What do you need, Dad?"

Bill cleared his throat, but still didn't say
anything. The air in the room hung heavy, punctuated by the
unspoken tension between Will and his father.

"Dinner's ready."

"Saved by the bell," Charlotte quipped
lightly.

Will caught her eye, and they exchanged
another glance full of understanding.

Just then Lexi and Wyatt burst in through the
back door. "Oh my goodness I fed my calf," Lexi said, her voice
somewhere between a squeal and a squeak.

The girl's chatter accompanied them all to
the dining room table, but Will couldn't let the tension go. He
frowned back at his father as they passed one another.

****

Charlotte could see the stress building in
Will's frame. He hunched over the dinner table, stabbing the
meatloaf with his fork as if his life depended on it. Even his
brothers seemed to notice.

"I think the meat's already down for the
count there, bro," Walker said with a chuckle.