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Her lips parted in an unsteady smile as Dallas let out the breath she’d been holding and took a step closer. “Do you really mean that?”
“You damned well better believe I do,” Quint declared with fervor.
The quick shining light that leaped into her eyes drew a low, exultant laugh from him as he reached with his good arm and pulled her against him. There were no words to describe the powerful emotion that filled him, and Quint much preferred to show her.
Epilogue
The sun was at its zenith, stripping the ranch buildings of their shadow and giving a summer warmth to the December day. Dallas hummed to herself as she crossed the ranch yard, bound for the house.
There was a radiant look to her face that rivaled the Texas sun. Not even the purpling bruises on her cheek and neck were visible, concealed by an adept application of makeup.
As she reached the porch steps, she caught the distinctive sound of a vehicle traveling up the ranch lane. Pausing, Dallas turned and cast a curious glance its way, but the blue sedan that rolled into view wasn’t one that she recalled seeing before. At first she assumed it was a health inspector coming to check on the quarantined herd, but the car carried no government identification, either on its tags or its doors.
When it came toward the house, Dallas walked out to meet it. The sun’s glare on the windshield blocked her view of the driver, but she had a clear look at a large box in the rear seat, filled with wrapped gifts.
The door on the driver’s-side swung open and a smartly dressed woman stepped out, slender and petite with raven-dark hair. A smile spread across her face when she saw Dallas. Without hesitation, she came to meet her, quick to extend a hand in greeting.
“You must be Dallas. We spoke a couple times on the phone. I’m Cat Echohawk, Quint’s mother.”
Dallas stared at the woman’s startlingly green eyes for a stunned moment. Other than the black color of their hair, there was little resemblance between mother and son.
Recovering from her initial surprise, she grasped the woman’s outstretched hand. “Mrs. Echohawk,” she murmured. “I didn’t know you were coming. Quint must have forgotten to mention it.”
“That’s because he didn’t know. I decided to surprise him. And please call me Cat.”
“Welcome to the Cee Bar, Cat.” Dallas struggled to sound natural, but she felt oddly flustered and nervous.
“The old place hasn’t changed much,” Cat remarked, her glance making an idle sweep of her surroundings.
“Of course, you’ve been here before,” Dallas remembered. “I’d forgotten. Would you like to come in? I was just going to fix some lunch.”
“Is Quint inside?”
“He’s in the barn, repairing a bridle strap. Would you like me to—” Dallas broke off the offer when she saw Quint emerging from the building. “There he is now.”
Clearly recognizing his mother at once, Quint broke into a jogging trot, a laughing smile of welcome on his face. He greeted her with a hug that was mostly one-armed.
“What are you doing here?” he declared, drawing back to look at her.
“It was obvious you weren’t coming home for Christmas. So I didn’t have any choice but to fly down here.” A hand reached up to cup the side of his face. “I’ve missed you, you know.”
“I know.” His simple reply conveyed a depth of understanding that reminded Dallas that it hadn’t been that many months since he’d lost his father. Then the smile was back, and he was turning to include her. “Have you met Dallas yet?”
His mother nodded. “We introduced ourselves.”
“I hope you’re going to be able to stay for a few days,” Quint told her.
“That’s the plan,” she admitted.
“Good. That’ll give you a chance to get acquainted with your future daughter-in-law.” Smiling with a kind of pride, he curved an arm around Dallas’s shoulder and drew her to his side, uniting them before his mother. He didn’t seem the least bit concerned that his announcement was a total surprise to his mother.
“My—you—” Cat stammered briefly, then laughed, the happy sound dispelling all the tension that gripped Dallas. “What a Christmas present this is! Have you set the date yet?”
“There hasn’t been time, but it will be soon,” Quint assured her.
“Quint,” she began on a note of excitement, “our old house at the Circle Six is sitting there empty. It will be the perfect place for the two of you to live.”
“Don’t get your heart set on that, Mom,” Quint cautioned.
