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“She’s nice. I bet under those bruises she’s a looker, too.”
I chuckled. “I’ll let you know once they go down.”
He studied me carefully as he paused in pouring. “You mean, you’ve never seen her without the bruises?”
“Nope, I met her last week when she crashed her car. Four-car pileup. She was the worst casualty and pinned inside her car. She made me stay inside with her while they removed the top. While we were under the sheet, she said something about me taking her to dinner.”
He laughed, and my mother was smiling. “Now that’s a story to tell your kids.”
Kids—now that was something that I hadn’t really thought much about, and it caused my gaze to slip to Tonya beside my mother and then to the table where Tyler and Marisol were playing a game with Huntley and Bradley. I guess in the grand scheme of things, I did want kids, but I hadn’t given it much consideration.
“Yeah, I guess it would be a good story,” I replied softly.
Wes left the room with the coffee mugs, and I continued to cook, my train of thought caught up in bottles, diapers, and giggles. Was Roxy interested in having children? It’s not something that either of us had ever discussed, not with how new our relationship was. I’d have to keep an eye on her and see how she reacted to the kids in the house.
When Charlotte came into the kitchen later and announced that they were going down to the country club, I was happily surprised.
“Charlotte, thank you for doing this,” I told her quietly as she passed by me.
She paused and looked confused. “Doing what?”
“For having Roxy help you. She was really having a hard time with her business in Plattsville.”
“Are you kidding, Henley? I’m thrilled to have help with this. I don’t know why I never thought about looking into this before. She has some fantastic ideas. I’m excited to be working with her. Besides that, I like her. She’s really nice.”
That warmed my heart even more, and I kissed her cheek before I went to check on Roxy and make sure she was up to the trip. She was still recovering, and I didn’t want her to overdo it. As I sat on the couch, I studied her, and for the first time in my life, I wanted something that I didn’t have. I wanted my own family. I wanted her and children, and as I stared into her light-green eyes, I wondered if our children would have mine or hers.
I didn’t tell her what I was thinking, but now that the seed had been planted, it was quickly growing. How crazy was it that I barely knew her, and yet I was thinking about a future—a serious future?
I got back to work in the kitchen and enjoyed the time listening to the kids talk and everyone joking around the room. When the game was over, Bradley had to make a phone call that was work-related, and the kids went out to the barn with Wes. Huntley took a seat across from me on the counter, and my mom and Tonya went to work on something else.
“How is work going?” he asked.
“It’s good. Busy, but good.”
“Do you like working out there?”
“Yeah, you know I do.” I laughed. “If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have tried to get you to come out there and work with me.”
He smirked. “Yeah, that’s true.”
“Why do you ask? You want to make a move?”
“No, just the opposite,” he stated, and I paused in what I was doing and focused on him.
“What?”
“Carl Wheeler is leaving. He just found out he has colon cancer, and we are looking for a new paramedic to take his place.”
“Are you serious? How bad is Carl?”
“Right now, he’s going downhill pretty fast. He has a long road ahead of him, and his diagnosis is pretty grim.”
“Well, shit. That’s two people I learned had cancer today. Know a third? Let’s get it out of the way now.”
“Hey, don’t wish that on anyone. Let’s say Brad’s wife was the first, and these two are the second and third.”
“Yeah, good deal,” I said as I chopped the tomatoes for the sauce I was now working on.
