A Family Name (20 page)

"I'm good, but maybe you could swing by
Mitzy's and pick up some flowers. That seems like a graduation
thing to do, right?"

"Absolutely." Charlotte felt the crushing
weight of her thoughts, and realized that the irony of thinking she
was living in the present while constantly dissecting and analyzing
the situation took her out of the moment. Shaking her head to clear
her mind, Charlotte flashed Will what she hoped was a confident
smile. The look he gave her back nearly stopped her heart. Though
the moment was brief, Charlotte could see the depth of her feelings
reflected in Will's eyes. When she blinked the flash of emotion had
receded, but she knew she hadn't imagined it.

Her heart felt lighter as she dangled the
keys from her finger and fairly skipped across the gravel to Will's
truck. If she could just figure out a way to reconcile her growing
feelings for Will with the desire to save their little family.
Nothing could get in the way of that.

****

Will watched as Charlotte pulled his truck
out of the gravel drive, and headed toward town, a puzzled smile
tugging at his lips. Shane patted his cheek pulling Will out of his
reverie. The little boy had improved by leaps and bounds since
their trip to Mount Rushmore, and not only did Will feel a massive
amount of relief but a healthy measure of pride as well.

The screen door thumped shut gently behind
him as he carried the little boy inside. "What do you think,
Shane-y? Should we make some pancakes for lunch?"

"Yeah!" Shane cheered and then popped his
fingers back into his mouth.

Will settled the boy into his high chair with
some fish crackers while he got to work making the batter. Pancakes
were one meal Will had perfected over his years of bachelorhood,
and it seemed to be serving him well with the kids. He pulled out a
half-full bag of chocolate chips knowing that Shane would be
practically giddy over the addition of chocolate.

Just as he was about to toss the first round
of pancakes on the griddle the phone rang. He grabbed the cordless
from the counter and tucked it between his ear and his shoulder. At
least he'd still be able to work on lunch.

"Is this Will Wright?"

"It sure is. How can I help you?" The batter
sizzled as it hit the hot surface. Will could feel himself
salivating, and he felt his stomach rumble.

"This is Edna Michaels. I'm Shane and
Sierra's grandmother?"

Will stilled. "Of course, Mrs. Michaels. We
spoke after the funeral. I remember you. How are you?"

"Oh, you know, being old is such a pain.
Literally." Edna laughed. "Nothing too much to complain about,
though, just some arthritis in my joints. Now Clark. That's another
story."

Will's mouth went dry. He had been dreading
this day, though he knew eventually Shane and Sierra would go to
live with their grandparents. That's what Steve and Gretchen had
wanted, and of course he wanted to honor their wishes, but he had
never expected to fall in love with the children. He couldn't love
them any more if they were his own flesh and blood.

"What can I do for you, ma'am?"

"Clark and I figure it's about time we come
to get the kiddies." She sighed and the line crackled in Will's
ear. "We thought that after school lets out would be the best time.
"

"Oh, right." Will heard himself speaking but
he felt like he was somehow detached from his body.

"I'll call you in a few weeks to discuss the
details, but I thought we'd better touch base. I would have phoned
sooner but Clark's been in and out of the hospital since…"

Will heard the catch in her voice, and he
felt a wave of compassion sweep over him. "I understand," he
said.

The two descended into a few long moments of
silence. The smell of burning pancakes shook Will to action. He
scraped the ruined food off the griddle and dumped it into the
sink.

"Take your time. We're all doing just fine
here. I'll expect to hear from you soon."

They got off the phone, and Will started
another batch of pancakes. Shane was still sitting in his booster
seat happily munching on the crackers. Just looking at the kid made
Will smile, but heaviness weighed on his heart. How on earth was he
going to give the kids up? He had an inkling that the heavy feeling
had something to do with Charlotte's hesitation to get involved
with him.

"Lunch is served, mister." Will placed the
plates on the table, happy to hear Shane's happy giggle over the
chocolate chips. And just as he had done for the past few months,
he pushed the thoughts of the impending transition from his
mind.

****

With the cake on the passenger seat beside
her, Charlotte swung by the tiny flower shop that doubled as a
candy store. She selected roses that she thought Will would like
for Lexi. She knew she was probably being silly with all of the
graduation stuff. Several of the people in Mountain View had given
her inquisitive looks as she went about her errands. She just
thought that Lexi needed something special to mark the transition
in her life.

Having decided that she wanted a coffee, she
swung by the café. When Charlotte walked in, she was pleased and
surprised to be greeted by so many locals. After placing her order,
Charlotte grabbed a seat at the counter and gazed around the room.
Her gaze landed on a group of women gathered around a large table
by the front windows. The sun slanted through the panes, casting
the ladies in a golden glow, making them look almost ethereal. If
she had still been in Rapid City she might not have paid any
attention to them, but here in Mountain View it was clear that
these women were a force to be reckoned with. As she glanced at
each one, wondering about her, she spotted Karen at the center of
the group.

A flash of shyness threatened to engulf her,
but Charlotte determined to go speak to the older woman. Despite
the fact that Karen had been nothing but nice to her, Charlotte
felt awkward around her, especially with the newfound feelings
toward Will. Her limited experience with meeting parents had been
jumbled around with their unconventional living situation. Not to
mention her own hang ups about families. Charlotte wondered if she
should call her foster parents. The thought intruded on the others,
unbidden but strong. Promising herself that she would make an
effort when she got home, Charlotte accepted her cup of to go
coffee, and made her way across the crowded café toward Karen.

"Charlotte! What are you doing here, darlin'?
Pull up a chair. Girls, this is the lovely young woman who has been
mothering my grandbabies." Karen produced a vacant seat as if by
magic. Charlotte hesitated for a moment, knowing she needed to get
home, but the pull to be part of something, embraced by this woman,
made her sit down.

"I was, just, um, running some errands in
town. We, I mean, Will and I are throwing a little party for Lexi
tonight. You should come, of course. It's just cake. For her
graduation. From eighth grade." Charlotte paused, aware that she
was babbling terribly. "Um, what are you guys doing?"

"This? Oh, we're getting a fun fair together
to raise some money for the roof over at Mountain View Elementary.
It's been leaking terribly for the past year. This winter took an
awful toll on it." Karen smoothed a sheet of paper in the thick
binder spread before her on the table.

Charlotte felt her face flush as she sneaked
a peek at the other women around the table. "Um, not to sound
stupid, but what exactly is a fun fair? I mean, I get that fairs
are all fun, but…"

As she trailed off a smattering of laughter
rose from the group. Instead of feeling embarrassed, though,
Charlotte felt relieved. The question didn't seem to make her look
dumb after all. Everyone started chatting at once, describing
various games and activities that would be held at the high school.
Charlotte tried to listen attentively but with so many voices she
got lost in the fray. Karen did mention a cake walk that sounded
like it would delight Shane and Sierra. Charlotte thought that
she'd have to get that on the calendar as soon as possible.

"Really the whole town is helping," Karen
said, showing off an impressive list of sponsors.

"Wow," Charlotte said, her voice soft with
amazement. Karen hadn't been exaggerating. The list was quite long,
and the monetary donations shown beside each entry were staggering.
Despite the modest resources the town possessed everyone had given
heartily.

After saying goodbye, Charlotte climbed back
into the truck. Her mind stuck on the fact that Mountain View had
the community she had always dreamed of belonging to, and back on
the ranch she had her ideal family. As soon as the thoughts entered
her mind, however, Charlotte berated herself on the fact that
living in a fantasy world had never done her any good. Despite all
the positives of the current situation, she had to remain cautious.
Happiness was too fleeting, too fickle.

Still… as she drove west from town, she
couldn't help but feel the tug at her heart. If only Mountain View
had a way to draw in the tourist dollars. Maybe if the people in
town pulled together as they were to fix the elementary school's
roof they could come up with a solution.

Oh well, Charlotte thought with a shrug, just
another problem to ponder.

****

As Lexi raced across the gravel driveway with
Sierra, she felt the freedom of summer stretching before her even
though the air was still tinged with the coolness of spring. Her
last day of eighth grade! Next year she would be in high school.
Glancing over at the younger girl beside her, Lexi felt a rush of
protective energy. Even when they didn't get along so well, Lexi
felt closer to Sierra and Shane than she ever had to any of her
previous foster siblings. That had to mean that this family was
real. The forever kind.

"Charlotte? Dad? Shane? We're home." Lexi
dropped her backpack on the floor of the mudroom and kicked off her
sneakers. She could hear Shane giggling from the living room.

After Sierra had shed her school stuff, the
two of them ventured toward the sound of voices. When they rounded
the corner, Lexi nearly fell over as Shane barreled into her in a
bear hug.

"Surprise!"

Her dad and Charlotte stood holding a huge
cake with the word 'congratulations' scrawled across the top. Lexi
could feel the tears pricking the backs of her eyes as she stared
at the cake.

"It's for your eighth grade graduation,"
Charlotte said. "I know you don't get a ceremony or anything, but
we thought we needed to celebrate the occasion."

"Thank you." Lexi felt her voice tremble. She
hoped no one else noticed. If they did, she would be so
embarrassed.

"And these are for you too, sweetheart. I'm,
we're so proud of you." Her dad handed her a bouquet of roses and
gave her a hug.

As the five of them stood in the living room,
Lexi could feel the warmth of the moment swirling around them. She
knew that this was what a real family felt like. The look that
passed between Charlotte and her dad made Lexi think that they
might be on the brink of becoming something more, much more.

"Can I come, Dad? Please?"

Will turned to see Lexi jogging after him.
She'd already donned boots, a hoodie, and a hat. A pair of gloves
stuck out from her back pocket. He felt a grin split his face.
"Sure, Lex. Let's go saddle up."

They walked toward the barn in companionable
silence. Will marveled at the fact that less than four months
earlier he had been so self-absorbed that he wouldn't have noticed
if the sky had turned purple. Not once had he ever considered
someone calling him Dad and how that would make him feel.

"Where are we headed today?" Lexi stood up in
her saddle making sure the stirrup lengths were correct.

Will adjusted the cinch on his saddle, and
turned to smile at her. "Actually, I wanted to head out to the dig
site, check things out. I'm planning to bring a class up here soon
so… you know."

"I get to see the dig site?" Lexi's smile
nearly split her face.

"Wait!"

Will turned and felt a flush of pleasure as
he saw Charlotte jogging into the barn. Just the sight of her made
him think of slow, long, uninterrupted kisses and well, other
things, but he managed to temper himself since his child was
present.

"I baked these for you to take-out."
Charlotte held out the bag.

Will swung down from his horse. In a low
voice he said, "We're heading out to the dig site."

Charlotte's brow furrowed. "Why? I thought
you just went out there last week. Isn't everything in order?"

"It's not that. I'm ready for my class, but
it's something that Mark said at Rushmore. I need to check it out."
Will shook his head as his colleague's words repeated in his
mind.

"Be safe," Charlotte said, putting her hand
on his arm.

"I will," he said, his voice catching in his
throat at the obvious concern in her eyes. "And I'll take care of
our girl too."

"I know." The smile Charlotte gave him made
him feel like the most important person in the world at that
moment. Then she turned, and waved across the barn. "Have fun, Lex.
Be good."

"Charlotte," Lexi said, rolling her eyes, but
grinning just the same.

As Will and Lexi headed out onto the trail
that led to the dig site, the sun broke through the clouds, warming
the day. Will tipped his hat back slightly, and glanced over his
shoulder at his daughter. She rode like she had been born in the
saddle. The horse that she had pretty much claimed as her own,
Acapella, was not the gentlest horse in the barn, but Lexi seemed
to like her spirit. Walker had talked him into letting her use the
horse, as Will would have preferred to see his little girl on
Morris, the oldest horse on the ranch.