Her Unexpected Family (16 page)

“The current plan is to have their mother and grandmother pick them up around six forty-five. They're going to bring them back here and watch them for the rest of the evening.”

He'd made contact with Serenity.

She held his gaze, but didn't try to hide her smile of approval. “That's good to hear.”

He smiled at her, as if her approval meant something to him, but then his face went sober. He leaned forward slightly. “She's sick, Emily.”

Emily glanced at Spencer and Christa. The sorrow in Christa's expression reflected Grant's.

“It's cancer,” Grant continued, “and she doesn't have a whole lot of time left. She and her mom are staying here in town so she can see the kids as often as possible.”

“Grant.” She reached out a hand and gripped his. “I'm so sorry.”

“Me, too.” He grimaced and ran his other hand through his hair. “But I'm glad you gave me a wake-up call, Em. That's what pushed me to contact her, and you were right. Living in anger isn't good for anyone. Because Serenity and Jacqueline will have the kids for the evening, anything you schedule with the DJ works for me.”

“I'll take care of it.” They noted a few more things, then she stood. “That's it, guys. Everything's in place. We're good to go.”

“Thank you.” Christa clasped her hand in both of hers. “Spencer and I are so grateful for your help, for guiding Grant through all of this. You've made everything seem so easy, and so right.”

“She's got a gift.”

Grant said the words casually, but when he reached out to help her get her coat in place, his hand brushed her cheek. And when she'd slipped her arm into the sleeve he stood right there, his hands on her shoulders, and then he repeated himself, softly. “A beautiful gift.”

He stepped back then and swung the door wide. She walked through, wishing he'd walk out with her. Wishing for time, for words, for—

“I'll see you Saturday, Em.”

She waved and fought the rise of disappointment. She was being silly. She'd walked away from him because he couldn't or wouldn't forgive. Now that he'd made a sincere effort, she should be happy for him. She was, but the sense of longing refused to fade. She backed down the driveway, sobered by his news about the twins' mother, but glad he'd stepped forward to resolve things. That was a major step in the right direction, and she was downright proud of him for doing it.

Chapter Fifteen

I
n his years as highway superintendent, Grant had handled blizzards, nor'easters, squalls, floods and two road collapses, but none of that compared to the past few days of nonstop organizing. With Christa's wedding just over three hours away, he was at the airport in a snowstorm to pick up the best wedding gift of all—Joe McCarthy and the rest of their Colorado family.

He hoped he'd done the right thing. It felt right, and Grant hadn't felt this way for a long while.

And when his father, stepmother and two siblings came through the door, Grant's chest went tight.

His father. Joe McCarthy.

Thin memories came back to him, of a big, tall man and a laughing little boy.

Grant moved forward. He stopped, awkward, wondering what he should say, then finally stuck out his hand and said, “Dad?”

Joe's eyes watered above a grin that matched Grant's. “Grant. It is so very good to see you, son.”

He hugged Grant then, hugged him hard, as if he never wanted to let him go.

Grant's eyes smarted.

He remembered this hug, the feel of it. The feel of his father, embracing him.

“I've missed you, Dad.” He didn't know he'd say those words. They tumbled out as if he was a kid, yearning for his father's time, his embrace, and maybe that's exactly what he was in this moment. A big, overgrown kid, finally in the arms of his father.

“Me, too.” Joe hugged him tight, then kept an arm around him as he turned. “My wife, Linda.”

“Ma'am.” Grant gave her a hug and wasn't surprised to see her eyes water as she glanced from Joe to him and back again. “And this must be Maggie and Michael.”

“Maggie's in her senior year at Colorado State and Mike's a sophomore at Oregon.”

“And you're a runner, Mike?”

His younger brother nodded. “Middle distance. Oregon's a great place for runners.”

“An excellent place,” Grant agreed. “And Maggie, you're majoring in education?”

“A teacher, like Mom.” She smiled at her mother, then turned a more shy version his way. “It's so good to meet you, finally. I hate family drama, and I love happily-ever-afters.”

“She's our romantic,” added Linda, smiling.

Joe chimed in. “I expect we better pick up our bags and get going. Will the snow hold us up?”

Grant cringed. “Well, we're getting lake-effect snow off Lake Ontario and Lake Erie, on top of the general storm that hit about an hour ago. We'll soon find out.”

The SUV crawled across the expressway. Minutes ticked by far too quickly, erasing the opportunity to stop by the hotel and get changed into wedding clothes. Even with four-wheel drive, Grant couldn't get his SUV around the other vehicles bogged down in the snow.

He was running out of time. He made a quick call to Reverend Gallagher and explained the situation. Steve assured him that Joe's family could get ready at the abbey once they arrived. That was good news, but as Grant approached the thruway exit finally, the line of stuck cars proved insurmountable. If they didn't get these cars moved, and the exit cleared, a major thruway backup was about to occur.

“Dad? You got boots on?”

“I do.”

“How about you, Mike?”

“Tall sneakers, just as good. I'm in.”

Grant undid his seat belt. “Let's do this.” The three men climbed out of the SUV. Grant put in a call to his department, explaining the growing problems at the thruway entrance and exit. He'd dispatched his plow operators hours earlier, and Jeannie was running things from the office, but the wet, heavy snow was winning the race against time.

He'd faced this before, and he'd lost a few of these snow-squall battles, but today he had to win. Today, the snow had to succumb to his timeline, because today his sister was getting married and her whole family was going to be there to celebrate. No stupid snowstorm was going to mess with his plans.

Grant pulled out the short shovel he kept tucked in the back of the SUV. Two other drivers had shovels in their stalled cars. Another driver, an elderly woman, offered them a short broom. They commandeered two shovels from the appreciative tollbooth attendant and got to work with other stuck-in-the-snow drivers.

Thirty minutes later, the exit was cleared of cars, and a plow truck was standing by, ready to open and salt the road. They climbed back into the car, tired and happy, with wet feet and pants.

“We don't look like wedding guests.” Mike brushed snow from his hair onto Maggie. She laughed and tossed him a bib from the backseat. “I expect this is Timmy's because it says ‘Almost as cute as my dad.' You can use it to dry your hair, Mikey.”

Grant drove the SUV up to the main road, ruing the time lost. In good weather, the drive from here to the Abbey was about thirty-five minutes. With today's weather conditions, it was going to take them much longer.

As he was about to make the right turn toward town and the lake that sat beyond the town, one of his snow plows rumbled through the intersection. The driver paused, gave Grant a thumbs-up and then proceeded to plow the road literally in front of them.

“Now there's an escort for you!” Joe clapped Grant on the back. “Did you ask them to do that?”

He'd have never asked, but Jeannie must have figured out the problem and launched a solution. He shook his head, but smiled. “We've got good people here in Grace Haven.”

“I'll say. At this rate, we should have just enough time to get inside, get changed and get into the chapel.”

“Christa will cry,” Grant warned them. “She has no idea you're coming, so expect waterworks.”

Linda sat forward and touched Grant's arm. “You're a good man, Grant.”

He shrugged, because he knew the truth. He'd been a jerk, plain and simple. He didn't deserve her kindness or her praise.

“And I'm sure I'm embarrassing you right now, but I wanted to tell you this.” He gave her a quick glance in the rearview mirror. She met his gaze and spoke with warm conviction. “I'm sorry about what's gone on before. It left a lot of hurt feelings and lost time, but in spite of the rights and wrongs, your mother did a good job with you and your sister. Grown-up drama aside, she put her heart and soul into raising you both up right, and I hope we can all appreciate that.”

Her words touched Grant in a special way.

It would be easy for Linda to hate his mother for the decades of hurt she caused Joe. Her gentle example set a loving tone of forgive and forget. It had taken him a long time to see the worth in that, and now the examples seemed to shine all around him.

Was that coincidence? Or God? And not the zealous, rigid way of God his mother espoused, but the soft, gracious faith he saw in Emily. In Linda. In Christa and his father.

He pulled into the far side of the Abbey at 2:40. Someone had plowed the service drive to the back door of the living quarters. Inside, the reverend's daughter showed everyone to a room in the retreat center, where they'd have plenty of space to get changed. He called home quickly as he changed into his own suit of clothes. The intense snow had forced a change in plans. Instead of coming to the wedding, Timmy and Dolly were staying safely at home with Serenity and her mother. “Jacqueline, how's everything going over there?”

Serenity's mother laughed softly. “The twins are napping. So is Serenity. And we've been having the time of our lives with them, Grant. They're so sweet, so dear, so funny. And Timmy called Serenity Mommy this afternoon.”

Mommy. A word that had never been in the twins' vocabulary before. “I hope that made her smile.”

“Smile and cry.”

Of course. But then Jacqueline went on, “Happy tears, Grant. Your grace and forgiveness have given my daughter the chance I feared she'd never have. To see her children. To be a mother, if only for a short time. Thank you.”

His heart went tight. His hands stilled over the half-tied tie, and then he sighed. “You're welcome, Jacqueline.”

“Go,” she urged. “Have fun and celebrate your family. Celebrate life. Celebrate love. It's too dear and fleeting to take for granted.”

She was right. He said goodbye, finished getting ready and moved down the hall. The chapel entrance was to his left. The bridal room was near Steve Gallagher's office just to the right of the chapel. He walked down the hall with his father, and knocked on the bride's area door.

Emily opened the door, saw him and stood still. Her eyes met his, a gaze of sweet yearning, the same longing that rose within him, as if today of all days it was too hard to hold back. He smiled down at her, then motioned his father into the doorway. “Em, I'd like you to meet someone who's come a long way to do a very special job. He's here to walk the bride down the aisle.”

Christa swung around from where Tillie and Janet from the bridal salon were fussing with her veil. “Dad?”

Joe smiled and walked through the door. “Is this okay with you, Christa?”

“Oh, it's more than okay.” Quick tears filled her eyes, then slipped in rapid-fire fashion down her cheeks. “It's perfect!”

“Don't cry, you'll muss your makeup!”

“Oh, let her cry, Tillie, it's nothin' we can't fix!”

“Oh, Dad!”

Joe hugged her, and when Emily put her hand on Grant's arm, he laid his own over hers. “You did this.”

He shrugged. “It's what I should have done from the beginning.”

“God doesn't care that we make mistakes. He cares that we fix them. This is wonderful, Grant.” The joyous bridal scene deepened her smile. “Just wonderful.”

“I blame you.”

“Me?” She wrinkled her forehead and held his gaze.

“You make me want to be a better person, Emily Gallagher.”

His words made her smile. She put her second hand on top of his. “Do I?”

“Yes. And I'll have you know it's been a somewhat painful process.” He tipped a wry glance down, then indicated the happy reunion. “You inspired this. I hope you're happy.”

She looked happy. And proud. Proud of him.

He leaned down and placed a gentle kiss to her forehead, a whisper of a kiss. A promise. “I'm a work in progress, but I think there's hope for me yet.”

“There's always hope.” Kimberly appeared behind him and tapped her wrist. “Five-minute warning. Are we ready?”

“Yes.” Christa smiled up at her dad as Janet fixed her smudged makeup. “We're ready.”

“Can I sit in back with you?” Grant asked.

Emily shook her head. “No, you belong up front, but since Kimberly is here to take the rear post, I would be honored to sit up front with you, Grant. If that's all right.”

All right?

The month before he'd put pain in her eyes through thoughtless actions. She'd walked away, and Grant had been pretty sure she wouldn't be walking back anytime soon. Her strength showed his weakness and set the bar high. She was right—forgiveness was the key to peace of mind, peace of heart. He laid his hand over hers and moved toward the door. “It's not all right, Em. It's perfect.”

He held her hand through the heartfelt service, and when it was over, Grant had made another decision, one that meant everything to him. He didn't want Emily to leave Grace Haven. He didn't want her to dash off to some big city, impressing big-league buyers with her snappy style and savvy decisions.

Was it selfish to want her here, with him? With the kids?

No. It was just plain right. She fit here. She belonged here. And one way or another, he aimed to convince her of that.

He caught her hand later, when the bride and groom finished cutting their cake. She turned, and the smile she gave him made him feel ten feet high. “Are you free in the morning?”

She made a face. “After church, possibly.”

“I meant
for
church.”

She paused and studied him, as if assessing his sincerity. “I'd like to take Timmy and Dolly,” he went on, “but I don't want to do it alone. Would you—”

She didn't wait for him to ask the question. She nodded and clapped her hand over his. “I'd be happy to go to church with you, Grant McCarthy.”

“Yeah?” She was looking up at him, purposefully, and the light in her eyes made him feel bigger. Stronger. “It might be a total disaster.”

“Possibly, but when they get used to going regularly, they'll be fine. And with both of us there, the odds are with us. Two against two.” She smiled at him, and that simple gesture made a good day that much better. “Can we bundle them up and take them to the Winterfest in the park afterward?”

He hadn't been to the town's winter celebration in over a decade. His bad, for keeping himself outside the hustle and bustle of the sweet town he called home. “I'll bring their things.”

“Excellent.”

He held her gaze. His grip on her hand tightened. More than anything, he longed to dip his head. Touch his lips to hers. Kiss her senseless.

“Oops, there's my cue to organize the dances.” She slipped her hand out from under his, but touched his fingers one last, quick time, then stood on tiptoe and whispered, “We'll revisit that idea tomorrow, okay?”

Christa's wedding came first. He smiled and nodded, because she was right. Today was Christa's day, as it should be. But tomorrow, and every day thereafter, he intended to see about winning Emily Gallagher's heart. Starting with a church service and a winter afternoon in the park.