Heather had barely stepped through the front door when the phone rang. Dropping her bag on the floor she raced to answer it, glancing briefly at the caller ID as she grabbed the cordless. Murphy pranced around her feet and she reached down to pet him.
“Hi, Tracie,” she greeted breathlessly.
“Ah, you’re home at last! How’d everything go?”
“Fantastic. As easy as we could hope for.”
“Glad to hear it. How’d Murphy react to that new baby?”
“He is absolutely smitten with her.”
“Where’s Jeremiah?”
“Bringing Ellie in. I can’t wait for you to meet her, Tracie. She has the most beautiful blue eyes.”
“Just like her big brother.”
The phone beeped in her ear. “Hey, can I call you back in a minute? Christina and Curtis are calling.”
“Don’t worry about that. I’ll just come up, if that’s all right. I can’t wait to meet my new granddaughter.”
“We’ll see you in a few,” Heather laughed and switched the phone over. “Hi, Chris.”
“Actually, it’s Curtis. Chris is outside with the kids. I’m just calling to see if you guys are home yet. Obviously you are. Are you feeling up for a visit or would you rather we gave you a couple hours to get adjusted?”
“No, come on over.”
“Um… Mom and Dad wanted to know if they’ll get to meet the newest member of your family.”
Heather let out a breath. Once she’d gotten over her guilt for cutting most of her family out of her life, she had found a new rhythm and a blissful peace without their constant negativity. She’d already broken her promise to herself and invited her parents to her and Jeremiah’s wedding reception not quite a month ago. Her mother had initially been upset Heather hadn’t invited them to the wedding, too—proving why Heather had been right to exclude her from the ceremony—but at least she’d sort of apologized for all the pain she’d put her daughter through over the course of her life.
She hadn’t talked to Brock or Brianna at all in the last year—not even to meet Brianna and Todd’s new daughter.
Her relationship with her father was easier. Part of her still resented that it had taken Jeremiah getting shot to convince Brian he was a good man, but at least he’d been friendly in the last year. It irritated her mother to no end that Heather had welcomed him back into her life, but he was willing to abide by Heather’s wishes. Lily wasn’t, and at this point, Heather doubted she ever would be. Which was fine with her. Her new life was quite comfortable and enjoyable just the way it was.
“Heather?” Curtis asked. “If it’s taking that long to make a decision, the answer’s probably no. Go ahead and say it. She’ll just have to accept it.”
He had a point, but… she was curious.
“Yes, Mom can come meet her,” she replied finally, “but not today. Dad can come with you if he wants.”
“I think he’ll wait until you say Mom can come meet your little girl. All right, Chris and I will be over in a bit.”
“You’re going to bring the kids, right?”
“Of course. Joseph is dying to see his Un Juh.”
Heather smiled, remembering Christina’s remark that Joseph would have a stronger bond with Jeremiah than with his own father. It hadn’t quite come true, but Jeremiah was easily one of Joseph’s favorite people, and he definitely had a special bond with the little boy. “See you then.”
She ended the call and set the cordless back in its cradle, wondering what was taking Jeremiah so long. When she and Murph stepped out onto the porch of their new home—a beautiful two-story affair with a stunning view of the Lazy H Ranch—she saw exactly what had delayed Jeremiah. Tracie was here already, ooing and awing over her new granddaughter.
Was I on the phone with Curtis that long?
With Ellie tucked in her arm, Tracie embraced Heather. “You’re so right. She does have the most beautiful blue eyes.”
As if the twelve-week-old Aussie pup understood every word, she licked Tracie’s face enthusiastically, eliciting a girlish giggle from the matriarch of the Hammond clan. Heather ruffled the little girl’s ears.
“I thought you wanted the mom,” Tracie said. “What changed?”
“We did,” Jeremiah replied, “but she’s going to an even better home—she’s going to be a therapy dog for a little girl with autism. It was a good week for this family of rescue Aussies. Both of Ellie’s littermates got adopted, too.”
“Wonderful. What did the rescue people think of Murph?”
“They adored him, naturally.” Jeremiah squatted to give his dog loves, laughing when Murphy was more concerned with sniffing his new sister. “And he was too enamored with Ellie and her pretty mama to be his usual shy self. Needless to say, the folks at the rescue didn’t have any concerns about what kind of life Ellie would have here.”
“I bet not.”
“Come on in, Mom. No point in standing out here sweating.”
“I will, but I have something out in my car for you. Here.”
Tracie handed Ellie to Heather and trotted out to her car, returning moments later with an external hard drive. “Skye finished going through all your wedding photos, and now she needs you to pick which ones you want made into prints.” Tracie glanced around their house, which they’d moved into only a month ago—right before their wedding. “Because you need some pictures to make this place look lived in.”
“We do indeed,” Heather agreed. “Would it be too much to ask to get some copies of some of the pictures you have of Jeremiah with your family?”
“It absolutely would not be.”
Noticing that Murphy had been staring at her for some time now, Heather gave in and set Ellie on the floor with him. They immediately started playing, and she was impressed again by how gentle he was with her. He was just a good dog, all the way around. Glancing at Jeremiah as he made his way back into the living room with their shiny new MacBook Pro, she smiled. Like owner, like dog—just good. Or was it the other way around?
They streamed the photos of their wedding to the Apple TV so everyone could see, and as they browsed, Heather had a hard time deciding which ones she wanted made into prints. The one of their first kiss as husband and wife was a definite must-have, but otherwise, they were all so good and captured their love for each other so elegantly that she had no idea how they were supposed to choose. There were a few Skye had taken of Jeremiah and the doctor who had saved his life, and maybe it was weird, but Heather wanted a print of one of them—a reminder of how special each day with him was just in case she ever started to take him for granted.
At some point, Curtis and Christina showed up with their three kids, and they had to start over. As the humans talked photos and the dogs played, Heather glanced around her. This was what life was supposed to be all about.
Leaning against Jeremiah and sharing him with little Joseph, she beamed at him. “I’m so glad you offered to salvage my birthday last year.”
He kissed the top of her head. “Me, too.”
She took him by the chin and kissed him soundly. “Took you long enough.”
* * * * *