and Justin against the two of them. So many times he took what both of them dished out so I…I wouldn’t have to.”
Gina sat back down on her bed and hugged Racy hard. Having been raised in a strict but always loving family, she couldn’t fathom what her sister-in-law described.
Racy returned her hug, then pulled back and brushed tears from her face. “Maybe what Justin needs is professional help. I think I’ll suggest that tonight when he comes to dinner. Of course, what he really needs is a good lawyer so he can fight for his son.”
Gina thought both were great ideas. Not that coming to terms with his childhood would do anything to solve what was, or wasn’t, happening between them, but making things right between father and son was the most important thing at the moment.
“When I was working toward my degree I spent time with a counselor,” Racy continued. “She helped me so much. Like Justin, I never thought I’d have children of my own. I was so scared I’d repeat the same horrible mistakes my father did.”
“But you worked through it, right? Aren’t you and Gage planning on having a family someday?”
Racy offered a wobbly smile. “Maybe sooner than you think.”
“What?”
“Nothing. We were talking about you and Justin.”
“There is no me and Justin. My head knows that. My heart is going to take a bit longer to catch up.”
The words came so easy that Gina almost believed them.
Pushing her own issues aside for the moment, she focused on her sister-in-law. “Now, what aren’t you telling me?”
Racy pulled her oversize purse to her lap, took out a paper bag and offered it to Gina.
“What’s this?” Gina peeked inside. “A home pregnancy test?”
“Five tests, actually. I went to a group of drugstores in Laramie.” Racy shrugged. “I wanted to cover my bases, in case one of them is a dud.”
Gina let go of her worries for now and rejoiced in the exciting news. “Racy, this is wonderful! Does my brother know?”
“Not yet. Can you imagine if I bought these tests in town? News of a Steele baby would spread so fast they’d be betting on the arrival date before I’d even had a chance to tell Gage.”
Gina sighed, easily picturing her big, strong brother cradling a newborn in his arms. “He is going to be over the moon about being a daddy.”
“I hope so.” A sudden smile lit up Racy’s face. “Let’s do the test now.”
“Now?”
“Sure, we could use the distraction.” Racy rose from the bed and headed toward Gina’s bathroom. “I’ll be right back.”
A few minutes later, Racy emerged with her eyes trained on her watch. “Okay, I replaced the caps to cover the absorbent tips, yuck, and I’ve set my alarm. We need to wait at least five minutes, but no more than ten.”
Gina grinned. “Did you do all of them?”
Racy nodded and returned her smile. “Just to be safe.”
Time seemed to crawl as Gina and Racy waited. When Racy’s watch beeped, both women jumped.
Silencing the alarm, Racy glanced at the bathroom door. “I can’t look.”
“What? Why?”
“I thought I’d be okay no matter the results, but now…”
Gina squeezed Racy’s hand. “You want me to check?”
Racy nodded.
Gina entered her bathroom and eyed the five testers on her sink. The results were identical. She took the first stick and headed back into her room.
“Yeah! We have a baby on the way!”
Justin stood at the oversize window in his sister’s dining room. It looked out over a large yard surrounded by trees on three sides and Echo Lake on the fourth. The sun was just about gone, but it was another warm spring evening.
He’d shown up at Racy and Gage’s home in time to join everyone for dinner. Now that the meal was over, Racy and Maggie Stevens, one of his sister’s best friends, were in the kitchen cleaning up. Gage and Landon, Maggie’s husband of a few months, had disappeared in the garage to check out Gage’s new motorcycle.
Justin had waved off Gage’s offer to join them and instead watched Jacoby race around the yard, playing man in the middle, or more appropriately dog in the middle, with Anna, Maggie’s daughter. Jack, his sister’s golden retriever, was trying his best to get the ball the kids tossed back and forth to each other.
We want our grandson. We can provide him with a stable life filled with the best of everything.
Richard Ellsworth’s words, spoken during their meeting this afternoon, echoed in Justin’s head. The big house, private schools and