“What’s going on between Cal and the McAfees’daughter?” Grace asked in a low voice, leaning toward her husband.
“I don’t know,” Cliff answered. Their eyes met above the menu and Cliff raised his eyebrows. “I asked Cal the other day and he pretended not to hear. I guess he doesn’t want to tell me. I’m sure you’ve noticed he’s a very private person.”
“I thought he wasn’t interested in Linnette.”
Cliff shrugged. “That’s what he’s been saying for months, but from all appearances, his feelings have changed—a lot.”
Grace didn’t see much of Cal these days. By the time she left the ranch to drive into Cedar Cove, he was already busy with the horses, either in the barn or one of the pastures. In the evenings, Cal gave the newlyweds their privacy. Grace hadn’t said more than a few words to him in the two and a half weeks since they’d returned to the ranch.
“Judging by the way he’s acting, I’d say he’s in love,” Cliff said in a low voice.
“What makes you so sure?” Grace asked, although she shared his suspicion.
Cliff’s mouth twitched. “Cal Washburn walks around with a dopey look most of the time.” He hesitated, and a smile lit up his face. “As a matter of fact, so do I.”
Her husband’s words warmed her heart. “Me, too,” she whispered. “Me, too, Cliff.”
Cliff set aside his menu and reached across the table for her hand. She was grateful he’d read her mood so accurately. She needed this time just for them, in a place that was neutral, that wasn’t her house or his.
Seeing that they were ready to order, the waitress hurried to the table, pad in hand. Grace chose the halibut in shrimp curry sauce, and Cliff asked for a T-bone steak.
Both dishes were excellent. Grace was thrilled that Cedar Cove had such an outstanding restaurant. She was proud of Justine and Seth and the success they’d made of this enterprise. Having worked as a commercial fisherman, Seth knew good fish and seafood, and served only the freshest. She could see that owning a restaurant was demanding, but so far the couple’s marriage seemed to be withstanding the pressures. Grace hoped that wouldn’t change.
When they’d finished, Cliff paid their bill. “Ready to leave?” he asked.
Grace told him she was. While Cliff retrieved her coat, she saw that Cal and Linnette were lingering over coffee; Grace smiled at them but they were completely absorbed in each other.
In the parking lot, where she and Cliff had both left their vehicles, he insisted on checking her car. She followed him home, arriving a minute or two after him. He waited for her outside the house while she parked in the space he’d cleared in the garage. When she joined him, Cliff placed one arm around her shoulders. Yawning, he covered his mouth with the other hand.
“Is that a hint, Cliff Harding?” she teased and playfully elbowed him in the ribs. He had a vigorous sexual appetite, although they were still a bit shy with each other. She knew exactly what he meant—he wanted to go to bed…and not because he was tired.
“Well, I guess you could say so.”
She laughed and slipped her arm around him, resting her head on his shoulder. “It’s late, isn’t it? We should’ve been in bed hours ago.”
“Yes—extremely late. So we’d better get a move on.”
Grace smiled to herself. After all, she wanted the same thing her husband did.
Forty-Seven
Cecilia woke from a sound sleep at Aaron’s first cry. She groaned inwardly and glanced at the clock-radio on the nightstand—4:10 a.m. It’d been four hours since she’d last nursed. Aaron was hungry again and he wouldn’t return to sleep until he’d been fed.
Ian rolled over when she climbed out of bed. “Need any help?” he asked sleepily.
“No thanks, sweetheart.” It wasn’t as if her husband could give Aaron his breakfast. Breast-feeding was a new experience; she’d never had the opportunity to nurse Allison. She’d pumped her breasts, wanting to believe that her milk would somehow provide the sustenance to pull Allison through her medical crisis. Sadly, it hadn’t.
Carefully lifting Aaron from his crib, she shushed the newborn, who was crying hard enough to wake the neighbors. Cecilia soothed him with gentle whispers as she changed his diaper and settled in the living room rocker. Singing softly to him, she unbuttoned the front of her nightgown and gave a slight gasp when her hungry son latched onto her nipple.
Ian’s barely discernible laugh caught her attention. “I have a strong son,” he said, walking into the room. He was barefoot and wore only the bottom half of his pajamas.
While Cecilia rocked and nursed the baby, Ian sat across from her.
“You don’t need to get out of bed for this,” she felt obliged to tell him.
“I know. I wanted to. It’s been two weeks now, but I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of watching you nurse our son.”
She brushed the tiny wisps of hair away from Aaron’s sweet face and gazed down at him in utter amazement as tiny milk bubbles formed at his mouth.
“From the first moment I saw you, I thought you were beautiful,” Ian whispered.
“Oh, honey, stop.” His compliments embarrassed her.
“You were,” he said with a sigh. “But you’ve never looked more beautiful than you do right this minute.”
His words filled her heart. “Thank you,” she whispered.
He seemed about to say something else, but paused, as if caught up in the emotion of the moment. After a while he said, “I’ve been thinking about us finding a house to rent. Maybe with an option to buy.”
She smiled at him quickly. “I’d like that. Where?”
Ian shrugged. “Cedar Cove. I want our son to have a real yard to play in and a neighborhood with other families, other kids. Living in a duplex is fine for you and me, but we have a baby now who’ll need room to grow. What do you think?”
“Let’s start looking today!”
“I’ll check with a rental agent to see what we can find.”
Cecilia nodded, excited by the idea.