Sweet Talk Boxed Set (Ten NEW Contemporary Romances by Bestselling Authors to Benefit Diabetes Research plus BONUS Novel) (30 page)

He pushed those thoughts away and called Ross. They made plans to meet at the barn later in the afternoon and then Rex drove over to Hal’s. He saw Treat heading for the barn with Adriana holding his hand and Dylan snuggled against his shoulder.

“Hold up,” Rex called out as he climbed from his truck.

Adriana dropped Treat’s hand and ran toward Rex. Even at five she resembled her grandmother, with long brown hair, big, almond-shaped eyes, and always a smile on her slightly wide mouth.

“Uncle Rex! We’re going to see Hope.” She jumped into his arms and wrapped her skinny arms around his thick neck. She smelled like syrup, and her sticky little hands told him that she’d had her mother’s famous pancakes for breakfast.

“Did you eat my pancakes this morning?” Rex teased.

Adriana’s hair was pinned up in two ponytails that swung as she shook her head. “Mommy saved you some, but Dylan ate Daddy’s.”

“He did, did he? That little rascal.”

Adriana giggled. “He is a rascal. Why weren’t you there for breakfast?”

“I was with Aunt Jade.”

She laid her head on Rex’s shoulder. “Mommy said Jade’s daddy is sick. I hope he feels better soon.”

“Me too, princess. Are you excited about being one of the flower girls for our wedding?” Adriana and Layla, Hugh’s daughter, were going to be flower girls and walk down the aisle together.

They came to the bottom of the hill, and Rex followed Treat into the barn.

Adriana nodded, eyes wide. “My dress is beautiful. Daddy said I’m going to be the prettiest girl there, but Mommy said I am not supposed to be prettier than the bride, so don’t tell Aunt Jade.”

“Don’t you worry about Aunt Jade. She thinks you’re beautiful, too. But I have a feeling you and Layla will be equally as beautiful.” Rex kissed her cheek.

She giggled. “Your whiskers are prickly.”

He set Adriana down. “Don’t get into any trouble.”

“Uncle Rex, I never get into trouble.” She held on to one of Rex’s fingers.

Rex walked up to Hope’s stall, and Hope didn’t nuzzle against his chest. Her head hung low, and her whole body seemed to sag.

“She’s having trouble today,” Rex said quietly to Treat as he opened Hope’s stall. “I was down earlier and I’ve already called Ross.”

Dylan reached for Rex, and he took him from Treat and kissed his chubby little hand. “How’s it going, moose?”

Dylan giggled.

“Dad was down even earlier than you were.” Treat’s face was somber. Rex could tell that he was worried about Hope, and they were both avoiding the elephant in the room—what would happen to Hal if Hope passed away?

“Where is he now?”

“Up at the house with Max and Shannon. Max is going with him to the hospital in a few minutes, and Shannon’s going to watch the kids.”

“Good. Jade is already there, and I’m sure she can use the company.”

“I talked to Dane this morning,” Treat said. “Lacy’s been sick. I hope they can still make the wedding.”

Treat petted Hope’s side, and Hope finally pressed her muzzle to Rex’s chest. Rex’s shirts were all worn in the center from that very motion. He was trying to ignore the tug in his heart at the thought of losing Hope.

“I know,” Rex said. “He called me at the ass crack of dawn.”

Dylan reached for Rex’s hat and he handed the toddler his Stetson, which Dylan immediately began sucking on.

“Sorry, moose, no leather snacks today.” He slid the hat back on his head, and when Dylan whined, Treat reached into his pocket and pulled out a hard rubber horse, which Dylan was very happy to gnaw on.

“In case I don’t tell you often enough, you’re a great father, Treat.”

“We had a great role model.” Treat nodded toward the entrance to the barn, where Max and Hal were closing in on them. Treat opened his arms to Max, and she settled right in against him, dwarfed by his broad frame.

“Heading to the hospital?” Treat asked.

Max’s long dark hair fell loosely over her shoulders. She wore jeans and boots, dressed up with a silky tank top. Max smiled up at Treat and went up on her toes to kiss him.

“We are. I just came down to get the kids and bring them up to Shannon so you guys could do manly things without being hamstrung by the kids.”

Rex pressed a kiss to Dylan’s cheek. “Hamstrung? I love these guys.”

Max stroked the back of Dylan’s dark head, and he reached for his mommy. She took Dylan from Rex, and he instantly missed the weight of him in his arms. The paternal longing that had gripped him over recent months rose to the surface.

“I know you do, Rex. Maybe after your wedding you and Jade can start a family right away.”

“That’s the plan.” Rex knelt beside Adriana and lifted her up in the air. She squealed and giggled. He kissed her cheek, then set her on her feet. “If we’re blessed enough to have children half as wonderful as yours, we’ll be in good shape.”

Max rolled her eyes. “Please, with yours and Jade’s genes, you’ll have smart, strong, beautiful babies.”

“They’ll have stubborn babies.” Hal slung an arm over Rex’s shoulder. “Stubborn, proud, beautiful babies, like we did.”

“Thanks, Dad.” Sadness swept through Rex as Jade’s father’s mortality eked into his thoughts. Hal’s hair was now more gray than black. His face was mapped with lines from too many years of toiling under the hot sun. He was still a handsome man, and it was easy for Rex to fool himself into thinking that his father might live forever with his fortitude and commanding air of self-confidence. But with Hope and Earl ailing, real life had a way of creeping in and stripping away the linebacker shoulders and barrel chest and revealing the aging man beneath.

“How’s Jade holding up, son?” Hal asked.

“About as good as to be expected. She refuses to postpone the wedding, though, and that isn’t sitting well with me.” He contemplated telling his father about the necklace, but he didn’t want to upset him. He held out hope that they’d eventually find it.

“What does Earl want?” Hal asked.

Rex found it interesting that Hal didn’t ask what he wanted, but then again, he and his father talked often, and Rex had made no bones about wanting to marry Jade since the day he’d fallen in love with her.

“He wants us to go through with it.”

“Then, that’s what you’ll do.” Hal went to Hope and kissed her on the top of her head. “Right, Hope?”

Hope neighed and nodded her head.

Rex scoffed. “What about
family comes first
and all that? Besides, what if Earl doesn’t get out of the hospital and he can’t walk her down the aisle?”

Hal turned serious eyes to his son. “Family does come first, son. The thing is, I don’t think Jade wants to take a chance at her father not being there any more than you do. I think her heart is too broken right now to think clearly, but Earl…Well, son, Earl’s thinking for her, and there are times in every father’s life when he has to step in and do the thinking for his children.”

Treat walked Adriana and Dylan out of the barn with Max, then returned to his father’s side.

“She’s an adult, Dad. I think she’s well past that stage,” Rex said.

“I’ve got to tell you, Rex,” Treat said. “I know what Dad’s talking about. I think Adriana will have a hard time keeping my nose out of her business.”

“So I’m supposed to just sit back and go along with it? Call the florist and the caterer and the photographer as if I’m excited to get this wedding off the ground? And what about Dane and Lacy?”

“They’ll be here,” Hal said as he stroked Hope’s cheek.

“Lacy’s sick,” Rex reminded him. “So we might end up getting married without Earl, Dane, or Lacy, and that would suck.”

Hal kissed Hope’s jaw and mumbled something that Rex couldn’t hear. “Trust me, Rex. They’ll show up. I best be on my way so Max doesn’t leave without me.”

“Dad, Ross is coming over to check out Hope this afternoon,” Rex said.

Hal waved him off. “Hope’ll be fine, too. She just needs you and Jade to work all this crap out.”

Rex watched him walk up the hill and sidled up to Treat. “Dad still thinks he can talk to Mom through Hope. Should we be worried?”

Treat shook his head. “If you’re worried about his mental faculties, no, you shouldn’t worry. He’s as sane as they get. If you’re worried about whether he’s going to fall apart if Hope dies…” He shrugged. “Won’t we all?”

Chapter Five

JADE WATCHED THE nurse take her father’s temperature and check his monitors and leads while Earl asked her four times when he could go home. The staff at Weston Memorial Hospital were efficient and compassionate, and Ben had already been by twice this morning. Jade had asked Ben about dietary restrictions for her father, and she took copious notes for her mother, who had been vacillating between acting perfectly fine and looking as if she were in a daze. Jade was as worried about her as she was about her father.

“Knock, knock,” Max said as she came into the room with Hal. Max hugged Jane. “How’re you holding up?”

“I’m okay, but Earl is ready to jump out of this bed.” Jane squeezed Earl’s arm.

“I’m sure he is.” Max leaned down and kissed Earl’s cheek. “You’re ready to break out of this joint, Earl? Nothing can hold you down.” Earl wasn’t used to a sedentary lifestyle. He had retired from his agricultural engineering job a few years earlier. He’d been running the family ranch while working full-time, which meant that he now worked one job instead of two.

“Nice to see you, Max. I’m ready to get out of here, but Benji’s keeping me for another day of observation. I’m waiting for them to take this damn pacemaker off of me so I can walk around. And by that I mean hightail it out of here. I swear he’s just keeping me here to piss me off,” Earl grumbled.

“Which is probably why he’s keeping it on,” Max said.

Earl grumbled something indiscernible in response. His eyes brightened when he greeted Hal. “Hal, nice of you to come by again,” Earl said.

“Someone had to see if you were still faking all this crap,” Hal kidded.

“Hey, at least I know how to have a
real
heart attack.” A few years earlier Hal had suffered a case of broken heart syndrome, the symptoms of which mimic those of a heart attack. It was well before he and Earl had gotten over their feud, but it had become the brunt of a few running jokes, and Jade could tell that Hal took no offense to her father’s comment.

“None of that broken heart syndrome shit for me. That’s for sissies.” Earl let out a deep laugh, then abruptly silenced. He flattened his hand against his chest and groaned.

Jane’s eye went wide. “Earl? What is it? Jade, get Ben.”

Jade was already heading for the door when her father’s gruff command stopped her.

“I’m fine. Stay put, Jade.”

“Dad?”

“It’s normal for me to have a little chest pain. Didn’t you two listen to anything that boy told us? Now get back in here and settle down, darlin’.” Earl narrowed his eyes at Hal. A silent kinship passed between the two men.

“Eh, leave the old man alone,” Hal said. “He knows what’s going on in his own body.”

“But he doesn’t always respect it,” Jade said. “I’m going to grab a cup of coffee and give you some privacy. Would anyone like some?”

“I’ll come with you,” Max offered. “Jane, would you like to come with us?”

Earl patted his wife’s hand. “Please go, Janie. You’ve been here all day. Go enjoy a hen party.”

“Dad!” Jade was relieved to see the tension in his face disappear and a smile curve his lips. “Come on, Mom.” Jade linked arms with Max and her mother, and they headed down to the cafeteria just like that. A chain of strength.

“Before I forget, Max, can you give Mom your recipes for heart-healthy cooking?” Jade asked.

Max raised her brows. “You mean my secrets? Absolutely.”

“Thank you, Max. If Earl knew I was making substitutions, he’d complain before he even tasted the food.”

“Hal, too. Shh. Don’t tell Treat, but I do it with him, too.” Max and Jane laughed.

Jane put an arm around Jade. “How are you really holding up, baby girl?”

Jade sighed. “Okay, I guess. I just hope Ben is right and Dad will be okay. Even if he can’t walk me down the aisle.”

“Oh, he will walk you down that aisle, Jade. He dreamed of that day long before you ever did, and you know your father. He’s a stubborn man.”

Jade stepped into the elevator behind Max and her mother.

“So you don’t think I’m doing the wrong thing by not postponing the wedding?”

The elevator doors opened, and they walked toward the cafeteria.

“I don’t know, Jade. Your father thinks you shouldn’t postpone it, so who are we to argue?” Her mother smiled, but Jade could see that she was as conflicted as Jade was.

“Rex isn’t happy about not postponing.”

“But he loves you so much, Jade. He’ll do what you want to do,” Max said. “I swear I’ve never seen such a brawny man soften when he talks about a woman the way Rex does when he talks about you.”

“Except when Treat talks about you—or any of his brothers talk about their significant others,” Jade reminded her.

“Maybe, but Treat’s demeanor is gentler to start with. Rex is like this big brooding hulk, except when it comes to you, he’s like a big teddy bear. Like Hal.”

Jade’s eyes welled with tears, and she stepped to the side of the hall. “God, I hate this. I’m sorry. I’m so emotional right now.”

Jane put her arm around her. “It’s okay, honey. We’re
all
emotional right now. You’ll feel better when your father’s at home and out of that awful hospital gown. It makes him look fragile.”

“Maybe,” Jade said. “I’m sorry, Mom. I should be strong for you, and here I am as weepy as can be.”

“It’s okay, honey. We all cope differently, and you have a lot on your plate right now.” She smiled, and it softened the worry lines on her forehead.

“Is there anything I can do to help?” Max asked.

Jade’s phone rang, and she dug it out of her pocket. “It’s Riley. Hold on a sec.” She held the phone up to her ear. “Hi, Ri.”

“Hey, how are you today?”

“Okay. Mom and Max are here at the hospital. Hal’s in with Dad, so we’re going down to the cafeteria.”