Her Secret Twins. Janette Foreman
her ear. Now or never.
The breeze teased the hem of her sundress as she took the gravel walkway. A backdrop of South Dakota pastures waved green beyond the yard, long-forgotten dog kennels and outbuildings.
“Hey,” she said, feeling a little silly sounding casual when she hadn’t seen him in so long. If only her voice didn’t sound so small.
Grant had one thumb in his jeans pocket, head tilted to keep the sun from his eyes. “Hey, Kallie.”
Oh, that voice. Sounded even better in person than it did over the phone. “How was the drive?”
“Not too bad.”
“Well, hopefully this trip won’t take much of your time. I’ll try to keep things brief. Who would’ve thought we’d end up owning property together? I guess Dad forgot to update his will after we split.” She was rambling now—why couldn’t she stop? “I guess I just, I don’t know—”
“Kallie?”
Pausing, she met his gaze.
“I’m sorry about your dad.”
The past two years’ struggles came over her in waves and she barely managed to keep eye contact. Pressing her lips together, she finally glanced away. “Thanks.”
“What happened?”
“Wait—the attorney didn’t tell you?”
“No.”
“Well, Dad was getting worse every month. I mean, sharp as a whip mentally. But his body was giving out on him—”
“But what was it? Cancer? Parkinson’s?”
“ALS.”
Grant fell silent, closed his eyes, knit his brows together.
A dreaded weight pushed down on Kallie’s shoulders. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to spring the news on you the moment you got here.”
“I was only gone two years.” His voice sounded scratchy all of a sudden.
“He was diagnosed two Christmases ago.”
She could see his jaw muscles working. He looked around as if for an escape, then turned his attention to Ruby, who intently sniffed his tailgate. “Hey, there,” he murmured. “You smell my dogs, do ya?” Two kennels stood in his truck bed. Grant worked his fingers through Ruby’s hair, his movements showing both his fondness and familiarity with her breed and his intense effort to come to terms with Dad’s diagnosis and death.
Truthfully, she hadn’t come to terms with it, either. Though she trusted in God’s goodness, she didn’t understand why He’d allowed such an ugly disease to consume her own father. Dad had been all she’d had. Mom had traveled so much for work as a medical sales rep when Kallie was a kid, and she saw even less of Mom after her parents’ divorce. Mom hadn’t even come to the funeral.
Sure, she’d tried calling Kallie a few times lately, but Kallie couldn’t bring herself to listen to the excuses anymore.
Dwelling on all of that now, however, wasn’t going to solve the dilemma she and Grant faced together. They needed to sit down and figure out what to do about the farm.
“So, um…” Kallie swallowed the lump in her throat and jutted her thumb back toward the house. “You’re probably beat from driving all day. Why don’t you come inside and I’ll make up some coffee? We can sit down and discuss everything.”
Grant gave Ruby one final rubdown, then stood. “Thanks, but I should get settled in town. My dogs need to eat, and I still need to stop at the dog park to let them release some energy before going to the hotel.”
“You’re not staying at your parents’?”
Hesitating, he glanced down the road. “No.”
She heard the meaning in his voice, his implication that the house was just a shell now that his mom wasn’t there.
At four hundred people, Bitter Creek wasn’t exactly a metropolis. People’s business was often out in the open. She knew his dad—who’d never been able to hold down a job—had drifted off somewhere shortly after Grant left town, and then his mom had moved to Norfolk, Nebraska, to live with Grant’s sister, Jill.
“How is your mom?” she asked.
“I’m sure she’s doing well—she’s a tough cookie.” His gaze dimmed a bit. “I don’t get down there to see her as much as I’d like.”
One of his dogs barked, which seemed to wake Grant from his thoughts.
“Shouldn’t even have their house still,” he said, rounding the pickup bed to check on his animals. “It’s old and falling apart. Probably more expensive to keep than to sell. But you know Mom—can’t let go of anything. And my sister isn’t helping.” The twinkle in his eye showed he was obviously not as annoyed as he pretended to be. He and Jill had always teased each other, and both loved their mom. Anything of hers would be hard to sell, even if no one lived here anymore. “I’d better head out.”
“Wait.” Kallie couldn’t postpone until later. Rachel only had the kids until their bedtime. “What about discussing the will?”
“It’s been a long day. We can do that tomorrow, can’t we?”
“But you’re already here. You might as well stay. Feed your dogs and let them run.”
“Well—”
“It’s a farm, Grant. There’s plenty of space. And half of it is yours, remember?”
“Kallie, come on.” He silenced her with his words, and suddenly she understood.
He’d intended to stay and talk things out, but being here overwhelmed him. She saw it in his eyes, the way he kept glancing at the road. Was he remembering how they’d left things? Or was thinking about Dad so painful that he needed to do it alone? Dad had been more like a father to Grant than his own had ever been.
Kallie glanced at her watch. Half-past four o’clock. She raised her gaze to meet his, hoping she could instill him with courage. “Please, Grant? Can you come inside for just a minute? It shouldn’t take long to figure things out. Then tomorrow, you can be on your way back to Iowa, if you’d like.”
Hands in pockets, he worked his jaw muscles again. The telltale sign he was thinking things through and was uncomfortable with the situation. Kallie wanted to scoff at the irony. Whatever tension he felt right now, she was pretty sure she could top it.
Finally, he conceded. “I guess it would be good to get it done tonight. I have some business in Bitter Creek tomorrow, and then I need to get on the road.”
He freed his dogs from their kennels, allowing them to roam while he followed her to the house. The screen door closed against its frame with a knock as they entered the kitchen, where the aroma of slow cooker chicken thickened the air.
Grant’s gaze wandered. “The place hasn’t changed much, I see.”
“No, it hasn’t.” At least, not the house itself. And she’d stashed away all the baby memorabilia for the time being—until after she knew what Grant was all about.
“I keep thinking Frank’s going to come around the corner, though.”
At Grant’s words, Kallie felt her throat begin to close. If this had been years earlier, she would have sought refuge in his arms. But things were different now. Turning to a cabinet, she took down a coffee mug. “Still like it black?”
“Yep.”
She reached for the fresh carafe of coffee.
“Do you still train Llewellins during the summer?” he asked.
“No, we quit when Dad’s health worsened. All we have left now is Ruby.”
“Oh.”