Coming Home to Paradise (Sisters in Paradise #3)

Chapter 18

Maverick parked his truck in front of the bar and turned to face Bo. “But she’s such a sweet old lady. She’s amazing with those little girls.”

Bo told him how Bernie had been adamant about Rae not keeping the twins and, more importantly, not even dating Gunner. “She insists that she used her matchmaking skills to put my four sisters in touch with their husbands. When Endora and Parker get married, she’ll raise her number to five.”

Maverick opened the truck door and a rush of cold wind along with a few snowflakes rushed inside the cab. “Is that truth or just her reality?”

“Ursula and Remy knew each other in high school, and the sparks flew when they came home. Aunt Bernie had little to do with it, even if she does claim credit. Shane and Luna were already dating—albeit on the sly—when Bernie moved to Spanish Fort. She might have had something to do with Jake and Ophelia, but she says she used reverse psychology on Tertia and Noah,” Bo answered and then shivered.

“I’m sorry,” Maverick apologized. “I was engrossed in what you were saying.” He slid out of his seat, closed the door, and then jogged around the truck to help Bo out. “It doesn’t look like Gunner and Rae are paying much attention to her protests, or is she just doing some reverse psychology on you and Rae like she did Tertia and Noah?”

He unlocked the back door to the bar and stood to the side. The place felt different with no lights on, and no people around—as if it was empty and waiting, maybe hibernating for a day before the OPEN sign was turned on.

“I’m sorry,” Bo said. “I was woolgathering. You asked me about me and Rae being subjects for reverse psychology. I don’t think so this time. Aunt Bernie doesn’t want my sister to be involved with a policeman.”

“A few dates don’t mean a committed relationship or marriage. It could just mean two adults having some fun,” Maverick said. “What about you and me?”

“Like I told you before”—Bo followed him through the storage room—“she’s ready for me to settle down like my sisters. You are not that kind of man, so this isn’t reverse psychology. It’s not that she doesn’t like you. She just wants me to have someone who is ready to put down roots somewhere close to Spanish Fort.”

“That’s going into a relationship with marriage in mind. Where’s the fun in that? And besides the m -word scares most men so badly they go into fight-or-flight mode.” Maverick opened the door to his apartment and let her enter first. “Before that dreaded word, there should be first kisses, first time to make love, maybe moving in together—all those things that lead up to marriage.”

Bo could almost hear Aunt Bernie gloating about being right, but like she had said, it was her life. She was going into whatever this was with her eyes wide open and no intention of trying to change Maverick.

She held up her hand. “This conversation is way too serious for a first real date, so I’m changing the subject. What were you and the brothers-in-law talking about after church services?”

Maverick helped remove her coat and draped it over the back of an overstuffed chair right inside the door and then tossed his denim jacket over the top of hers. “We were talking about helping move Gunner out of his house here in Nocona. They plan on being there about two thirty to start loading up his stuff in a couple of cattle trailers. I volunteered us to help on this end.”

“Oh really?” Bo frowned. “Without asking me?”

Maverick shrugged. “You can stay here until I get back. I figure it will only take an hour, and Rae will be there with the little girls. Your family has done so much for me that pitching in is the least I could do.”

“Well, Rae and I are better at organizing things than all you guys put together,” she said with a smile.

Maverick crossed the room, filled two bowls with chili, and set them on the table. “You proved that when we decorated the bar for your meet-and-greet event.”

“That was Aunt Bernie’s notes, but honey, we’ll have things loaded and be back here in less than an hour.”

Bo took in the small living space in one quick glance. Living area with a brown-and-gold-plaid sofa that matched the chair—both of which had to be thirty or forty years old. A tiny table for two with a couple of mismatched wooden chairs, and a kitchen area that was really just a long cabinet big enough for a sink, an apartment-sized stove and a dorm-sized refrigerator. A king-sized bed took up most of the far end of the room. Except for the layout, it could easily have been her furnished apartment over a garage in Nashville.

“This place isn’t much, but for the next few weeks, it’s home,” Maverick said. “It’s like a five-star hotel after living in a bunkhouse with a dozen other men.”

“I bet it is. That chili smells so good.” What he had said about being around for the next few weeks kept playing in an endless circle in her head.

He sliced a round loaf of crusty sourdough bread and set it in the middle of the table, and then brought two bottles of beer from the refrigerator. “Dinner is served, madam.” He pulled out a chair and seated her.

“Thank you,” she said. “If I’d known we were eating here, I would have brought dessert.”

He sat down in the other chair. “We have rocky road ice cream.”

“My favorite.” She took her first bite and hurriedly grabbed for the beer.

“That bad?” he asked.

“That good, but it’s hot,” she answered.

“Hot as in fire, or as in spicy?” He cooled his first spoonful by blowing on it.

“Both, but you got a good sting on it with the spices.”

Maverick chuckled. “My grandmother used to say that. I haven’t heard it since she passed away several years ago.”

“Were you close to her?” Bo asked.

Maverick nodded. “Very. She lived with us after she retired. I was only four years old when she moved in. My brother, Denton, was sixteen and already preparing to step up into my dad’s world.”

“And you weren’t expected to do the same as your brother?” Bo thought about all the different ways she and her sisters had gone after graduating from high school.

“Yes, but I was only a little kid then and Nana shaped my life more than she did Denton’s. She read books to me about cowboys and chefs, and we watched old western movies with bars that had swinging doors. When I was older, she told me I didn’t have to be a corporate banker, that I could be anything I wanted. She encouraged me to get out and experience life, and when she died, she made that possible. I was just graduating from high school when she passed away and left me a trust fund big enough to choke an elephant.”

“Did you know that she was a rich woman all those years?” Bo asked.

“I knew that my father inherited the business from his dad,” Maverick answered. “I didn’t know that Nana’s folks left her a fortune made from getting into the ground floor of the oil business. My brother only speaks to me when he has to be civil. He thought he should have inherited half the money she left to me. And that answers your question about how I can afford to do whatever I want.”

“Where did you live and grow up?” Bo asked.

“You first. Have you always lived in Spanish Fort?”

“Nope,” Bo answered. “We were in Dallas. Daddy was studying to be a doctor when he and Mama got married. Ursula says that we all had a different father. Mama was working when she was born, so her dad spent time with her while he studied. Ophelia’s only got a little of his time because he was doing clinicals. Tertia got even less because he was on call so much as an ER doctor. By the time Rae and I came along, we hardly knew him, and the last set of twins were born in the dark days preceding divorce. But when we came to the Paradise, everything changed. Joe Clay became the daddy none of us ever really had.”

“I was born—as an oops child—in Houston,” Maverick said. “My mother only intended to give my father a son, and she got that job done on the first try. I was a surprise baby, but Nana took me under her wing and became a good role model. That’s probably enough for a seventh date. I thought maybe we would come back here after we help with the moving business and watch a movie. I’m a culinary expert on microwave popcorn.”

“What movie?”

“Since you aren’t still mad at me over volunteering you to help with the move, you get to choose,” he answered.

“How about Quigley Down Under ?” She remembered an old western movie with Tom Selleck that Joe Clay had watched over and over again when she and her sisters were young.

“That’s one of my favorites. Nana and I watched it often,” he answered with a smile.

“Then a movie and your famous popcorn it is,” she said.

***

Daisy and Heather were bouncing with excitement when they crawled into the back seat of Rae’s truck that afternoon when it was fully loaded. Rae wasn’t sure that all the stuff she and Bo had helped pack into the two cattle trailers was going to fit in the new home. If it didn’t, Gunner might have to rent a storage unit.

Bo tapped on the window seconds before Rae was about to pull out and bring up the rear of the caravan heading back to Spanish Fort.

“Did you forget something?” Rae asked as she lowered the window.

“Nope, not a thing,” Bo said. “Just wanted to tell you that you can’t count. Maverick says this is our seventh date.”

“Oh, honey, do we need to see a doctor?” Rae teased.

“What for?”

“You must have something severely wrong if you can’t close a deal in seven dates,” Rae answered and quickly raised the window so that Bo wouldn’t slap her on the shoulder.

“Is Miz Bo sick?” Daisy asked.

“Is she going to be at our Christmas program?” Heather’s voice quivered.

“She’s fine,” Rae answered, and reminded herself to be careful what she said in front of the girls. “Do you have any last words for the house you’re leaving behind?”

Daisy shook her head. “I’m glad we are leaving.”

Heather turned around and waved. “Bye, house.”

Rae took her place in the long line of trucks going through town. Just yesterday the parade looked very different with all its fanfare, music, and even Santa Claus. “What about going to the new school on Monday? You thought you’d have a couple more weeks at the Nocona school, but with your aunt Rosie getting sick with the flu, you wouldn’t have an after-school sitter.”

Heather let out a long sigh. “You’ll be there, won’t you?”

“Yes, I will,” Rae assured her. “Your dad has already gotten you enrolled, and he will take you, and you will come to my room after school.”

“Will you be waiting for us at the door when we get there?” Daisy asked.

“I can do that,” Rae agreed.

“Okay,” Daisy said and then like most kids changed the subject completely. “Daddy said there’s bunny rabbits that hop around outside our new house. Did you see them?”

Rae made the turn on the farm road heading north. “I did see them. You’ll be living in the country, and you’ll see lots of animals and birds.” Those first weeks that the family had lived at the Paradise had been an adjustment from living on a street with several other houses. To have so much room to run and play hide-and-seek, to be able to sit on the porch and have time alone seemed like heaven.

“Are we there yet?” Heather asked after a few minutes.

Rae had asked her mother the same thing when she loaded up seven little girls and went grocery shopping in Nocona once a week, and she also remembered Mary Jane’s answer and used it as she turned on the radio that played country Christmas songs from Thanksgiving until after the holidays.

“We’ll be there in three more songs,” Rae told them.

Daisy began a head wiggle to Blake Shelton’s song “Up on the Housetop.”

The song ended and the DJ announced that someone had called in a request for another song by Blake. “I wouldn’t want to disappoint anyone at Christmastime, so here it is.”

“I know this one,” Heather squealed, and sang along to “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!”

“Do you think it will snow at our new house?” Daisy asked.

“Bo told me there were a few flakes this afternoon,” Rae answered. “We never know until Christmas gets here. Last year, we had a really big snowman over at the Paradise.”

“This is the third song,” Heather said when the fiddle started the music for “Two Step ’round the Christmas Tree.”

“Daddy likes this song,” Daisy said. “He taught me and Heather the two-step. Do you think you and Daddy will dance at the Paradise party? Queen Bernie said we could come to the party and sit by her.”

“We’ll have to wait and see.” Rae made the turn down the gravel road that led back to the winery. At least she wouldn’t be fighting a gray dust cloud once she started down the rutted path from there to the house.

“Is that a store?” Heather pointed at the Brennan Winery building.

“No, that’s where Ophelia and Jake make wine,” Rae answered.

“Yuck!” Daisy said. “I like beer better than that stuff.”

Rae was so shocked that she almost choked. “When did you drink wine or beer?”

“Daddy likes a beer and sometimes he leaves a little in the bottle,” Heather answered. “So, we tasted it.”

“One of his girlfriends liked wine, and when she left, we tasted it,” Daisy said. “Heather liked the wine best, but I liked the beer.”

The orneriness has not been tamed yet, Rae thought.

“There it is,” Daisy squealed when she could see the house. “It really is way, way in the country. I love it.”

She and her sister had unbuckled their seat belts, hopped out of the truck, and beat Gunner to the porch. Rae stepped out to hear them both urging him to hurry up and get the door unlocked so they could get inside. She hung back, thinking that this should be his moment with his kids. He needed to be the first one to see the excitement on their faces when they discovered their bunk beds and the bathroom with two sinks. But he held on to the knob and motioned for her to join them.

“ Are you sure? ” she mouthed.

He nodded and she walked across the yard and put her hand in his outstretched one. “You’ll want to see their faces too. Would you take pictures, please? Those you shot when the lights came on at the Paradise were amazing.”

Daisy ran to Gunner and wrapped her arms around his waist. “Daddy, are we really going to live here?”

“Yes, we are.” Gunner’s voice sounded a little deeper than usual.

“Can we keep some of our books over there on the shelves by the fireplace?” Heather hurried across the room and made it a three-way hug.

“Of course, you can,” Gunner answered and motioned for Rae to join them.

Rae slipped her phone into the pocket of her long denim skirt and wrapped all three of them in her arms.

“Thank you, once again,” Gunner whispered.

“Someone open the door for us. We are bringing the sofa inside!” Remy yelled from the porch.

“You girls need to stand over there in the kitchen. The first piece of furniture is coming in. You don’t want to miss this moment,” Gunner said.

Rae broke free and held the front door open wide.

“Where do you want it?” Remy asked.

“Facing the fireplace,” Gunner answered.

Daisy clapped her hands and ran into the kitchen. “This is like Christmas.”

Heather followed her sister and peeked out over the island separating the kitchen and living areas. “Are we going to put up a tree? Did you tell the real Santa that we moved? What if he can’t find us out here in the country?”

“We’ll put up our tree this week. Santa told me that he already knows just where this place is.” Gunner helped get the sofa positioned.

“Can we see our rooms now?” Daisy asked.

Remy laid a hand on Gunner’s shoulder. “Go with them to see their rooms. That’s a memory you’ll want to keep.”

“But…” Gunner started to argue.

“We can bring in boxes by ourselves for five minutes,” Remy assured him.

“Thanks, man,” Gunner said and turned to the girls. “Of course you can, and then you can start unpacking your toys and books.”

Rae ran ahead to the end of the hallway and took pictures of them tearing down the hallway with their daddy right behind them. No doubt, the pictures would be a little blurry, but pure joy was written on all their faces. Rae videoed the squeals and expressions when they went into the first room and saw the set of bunk beds, and then they dashed off to find an identical setup in the next bedroom.

“Which one is mine?” Heather asked Gunner.

“They are identical, so y’all decide,” Gunner answered, “but you have to do it quickly, because I’ll bring in your boxes in just a couple of minutes. Once you decide, then you can’t change your mind or argue about it.”

“I don’t care which one I get,” Daisy said. “Miz Rae, will you help us unpack?”

Rae put her phone away and nodded. “Yes, I will. Let’s work together and put together one at a time. Who gets the first one?”

Daisy raised her hand.

Heather pointed at her.

“That was easy. Why did you make that decision?” Rae asked.

“I want the one closest to the living room, so I can hear Santa when he comes to leave our presents. I want a bike, and he’ll make lots of noise bringing that into our new house,” Daisy answered.

“I want the other one because it’s between Daisy and Daddy. If I get scared, they will protect me,” Heather declared.

“Fair enough,” Rae said. “Let’s do Daisy’s room first, and then move on to Heather’s.”

Gunner came in with three boxes in his arms. “These are all marked “Daisy”. Where do they go?”

“First bedroom,” Rae answered.

He set them down on the floor and raised a dark eyebrow toward Rae. “No arguing?”

“Nope.”

“You must keep a supply of miracles in your pockets,” he said above the girls’ chatter.

“Not miracles, but maybe a little of Queen Bernie’s miracle dust. She likes to share it during the holidays—especially when it comes to the twins.” She grinned.

***

“What does the smell of popcorn remind you of?” Bo asked Maverick that afternoon when they were back in his apartment.

“You go first.” He removed the bag from the microwave and carefully opened the end. Steam rolled out and the smell permeated the whole apartment. “What kind of memories does it bring to your mind?”

She carried two bottles of sweet tea across the room, eased down on the sofa, and kicked off her boots. “Movies in Nashville, when I had the time or finances to go to one, but in the past, it was movies at home on Saturday nights or Sunday afternoons. I loved those times even better than going to see something at the theater.”

Maverick sat down beside her and fed her a piece of the popcorn. “I didn’t go to a theater until I was a teenager.”

“Why?” she asked when she had swallowed and taken a sip of the tea.

“We had a theater in our house, and Dad had enough contacts that he could get copies of current movies for me and Nana to watch. Truth is, we liked our old westerns better than the new ones anyway, so I didn’t ask for many. Nana would make popcorn and sweet tea for herself. Chocolate milk for me,” Maverick said.

“Good grief! Just how big was your house?” Bo gasped and took stock of the small apartment once again.

He picked up the remote and started the movie. “Not as big as an English castle, but considerably larger than places I’ve lived in the last few years.”

“That narrows it down,” Bo said.

“Big enough that we had an indoor heated pool, a tennis court, and stables. My mother loves her horses. I had coaches for swimming, tennis, and riding,” he said. “I don’t usually tell anyone all that. Some of what I learned has helped me along my journeys.”

“Why? Because gold diggers would come out of the woodwork?”

“Pretty much, but mostly because when I do decide to settle down, I want the woman to love me, not my trust fund,” he answered.

Bo wanted to ask why he was telling her, but the still, small voice in her head reminded her that by saying what he did, he would be moving on. He wasn’t ready to put down roots in Montague County, so telling her about his background didn’t matter. At best, whatever relationship they had before he packed up his truck and left for another adventure would only be a short-lived fling.

“That sounds like a smart move,” Bo said. “Hey, the Paradise Christmas party is next Friday night. Do you think Dave might work until midnight so you could come to it? It starts at six and everyone usually clears out by eleven or so.”

Maverick scooted over closer to her and slipped an arm around her shoulders. “I’ll be there.”

The tingly feeling of his touch chased down her backbone.

“But you didn’t even ask Dave, yet.”

“He’s told me repeatedly that I can have a day off—other than Sunday—and I’ve never taken one, so I’m sure he won’t object. Besides, I can always turn in my two-week notice if he does. I’ve got a job offer, working in Wyoming at a little bar in Jackson Hole. They need a part-time bartender and piano player. You want to go up there with me? You could dress up in an Old West barmaid outfit and sing.”

Bo looked up at him and seriously considered his offer for a moment. “Thanks for inviting me, but I’ll stay here. Aunt Bernie would chain me to the barn floor if I even mentioned such a thing. Besides, I’m ready to put down roots, whether it involves a relationship or not. I don’t know what I want to do with the rest of my life, other than I would love for it to include music, but roaming all over the world doesn’t fit into it.”

She realized at the last second that he was about to kiss her, and barely had time to moisten her lips before his mouth closed on hers. She leaned in closer to him and forgot all about the movie. She was playing with fire, but she didn’t care about getting burned. She just wanted more kisses, and what they would lead to in the end.

Thunder rumbling off in the distance awoke Bo long before daylight the next morning. She slowly opened her eyes and propped up on an elbow to stare at Maverick sleeping next to her. She had no regrets about the amazing night they had had, but now it was time to walk away. Too many more and she really would have to listen to Aunt Bernie telling her repeatedly that she had told her so.

His dark lashes fanned out over his high cheekbones, and a strand of his long hair was across his beard. She gently pushed it back and brushed a soft kiss on his forehead. He wiggled but didn’t wake up.

She eased out of bed, got dressed, and was putting on her coat when he finally roused and sat up in bed. “It’s not even daylight, Bo. Come back to bed, and I’ll make breakfast for us in a little while.”

“I need to get home,” she said and blew him a kiss.

“That’s a long way to walk.” He grinned.

Bo frowned, and then remembered that she didn’t have a vehicle in Nocona.

Maverick tossed back the covers and slung his long legs over the side of the bed. “Give me a minute to get some clothes on, and I’ll take you home. I wouldn’t want Aunt Bernie to shoot me for making you hitchhike.”

Bo couldn’t take her eyes off him when he slipped on a pair of jeans, jerked a shirt down over his head, and stomped his feet into his cowboy boots. He could have easily posed as a male model for a nude painting class with all those bulging muscles and ripped abs. But if he ever did take on that job, the art teacher would do well to hand out drooling bibs to each student.

“Should we talk about last night?” Maverick asked a few minutes later as he escorted Bo out to his truck.

“It was great, and it was a one-time thing,” she replied as she settled into the passenger seat and fastened her seat belt.

“Must not have been that great if that’s the way you feel,” he said when he slid in behind the wheel.

“I love chocolate,” she said, “but if I eat too much, it makes me sick. Too much of last night will only end in me wanting what I can’t have and give me a heartache. It’s best to end it now and have the beautiful memory to hang on to for the rest of my life.”

“If only…” he said and then stopped.

“Care to finish that sentence?” she asked.

“If only the timing was right, I could fall in love with you,” Maverick finished.

“Right back at you, Maverick,” she said with a long sigh, and a few tears fell on her heart even if they didn’t stream down her cheeks.