Carson threaded their fingers together. "I"m sorry I hurt you. Really f.u.c.kin" sorry. Afterward I punished myself by pickin" a fight, but the pain I received wasn"t even close to the G.o.dd.a.m.n pain I saw in your eyes when I said the s.h.i.t I did."
"Language," she murmured.
"See? You"re too good to be true. But I want that goodness in my life. I need it. I need you. I know things went a little fast between us last week. I was so tied up in knots over you that I wasn"t payin" attention to see if anyone else might"ve taken notice of us spendin" so much time together."
"Someone saw us?" They"d been so wrapped up in each other that they"d rolled around on a blanket at a picnic area. They"d practically skinny-dipped at Keyhole. They"d gone at it half-naked against Carson"s truck-also just off the main road where anyone could"ve seen them. Then he"d come to her house. Specifically into her bedroom. And he"d parked in the front yard, bold as bra.s.s. "Who?"
"Your brother Harland."
Shock froze her vocal chords.
"Evidently he saw my truck from the road that day I stopped by and he saw our goodbye kiss. He followed me home. When he realized who I was... He returned when I was alone."
"Are any of these bruises from him?" she demanded.
"His marks are on my throat because he d.a.m.n near strangled me before I knocked him on his a.s.s."
She twined her arms around him and pressed her cheek into his chest. She thought she"d cried herself out, but not so. A few stray tears slipped free and soaked into his shirt. "Are you okay?"
"I"m getting there. Look. The short version is your brothers all showed up around my place and threatened me if I didn"t break it off with you. Then they threw a buncha s.h.i.t in my face I"d done in the past, which combined with them extolling your virtues, went a long way in convincing me to break it off with you because I didn"t deserve a woman like you."
"All of my brothers did that?"
"Except Thomas. He watched me get my a.s.s whipped last night at the dance after you left. So at first," a nervous laugh slipped out, "I thought maybe he was there to finish the job. Turns out he wasn"t and he had some advice that pointed me in the right direction."
"Which direction was that?"
Carson tipped her head back and gazed into her eyes. "Straight back to you.""
Okay. So her knees went a little weak.
He caught her. "I"m done hidin", sugar. I"m with you. I don"t want to be with anyone else. So I want everyone to know I"m with you-and that includes your family and mine."
Her jaw dropped.
He covered her mouth with his, gifting her with the sweetest, most romantic, most convincing kiss. Then he scattered kisses from the tip of her chin to her temple. "Please forgive me for hurtin" you. I"ll do anything to make it right with you. Anything."
Carolyn clung to him, letting his soft kisses and promises bolster her courage. She"d never gotten into a fight with her brothers, besides the squabbling when they were kids. If she showed up at home with Carson McKay on her arm...what would happen?
"Caro?"
She turned and her forehead b.u.mped into the cut on his cheek and he hissed. "Sorry."
"It"s okay."
"No, it"s not. How many guys did you take on last night?"
"A few."
She stood on tiptoe and placed her lips on the wound. Then the one by his eye. Then the bruise on his jaw. And finally his upper and lower lip.
Wrapped in his arms, she was surprised to feel his heart pounding so hard.
"Am I forgiven?"
Carolyn arched back, locking her gaze to his. "Yes. But if I see your hands or any other part of you on another woman? I"ll do what needs to be done. To both of you."
"Won"t happen again." He brought her hand to his mouth and kissed her knuckles. "What were your plans for after church?"
"I put a pork roast in the oven and told my family I"d be home to dish it up after church let out."
"Is there enough food for me?"
She looked at him, seeing the wariness mixed with hope. "You"re serious."
"Very serious. I won"t be throwin" any punches-unless I"m defending myself or you-but your family needs to know they ain"t scarin" me off. We"re done sneaking around, Carolyn. Let"s do this. Meet each other"s families and make it official that we"re together."
Carson had on his brooding face as they drove to her house. But he kept contact with her, absentmindedly stroking his thumb over the inside of her wrist in a way that soothed her, yet awakened every nerve ending beneath that section of skin.
When they pulled into the driveway, she noticed her brother Harland"s vehicle was there, as well as Darren"s. Strange. They never showed up for Sunday dinner.
"Looks like the gang"s all here," Carson said dryly. "You think Thomas might"ve tipped "em off that I didn"t give a d.a.m.n about their threats?"
"Maybe. More likely is someone saw us together at church and called my mother."
"Sugar. You all right?"
She looked at him. Really looked at him, this handsome man, who"d changed her from the moment he"d entered her life ten short days ago. Here he was, battered and bruised, but still willing to stand beside her. She kissed him very gently. "This won"t be easy."
"Nothin" worthwhile ever is."
The front door slammed and her brothers filed out and spread out, arms crossed, poses belligerent. Her dad eased down the steps and waited in the center of his line of sons.
"Stay put. I"ll come around and help you out."
Both hers and Carson"s palms were sweaty when they met, but Carson kept a determined lock on her hand as they approached the line of Wests.
"I"d offer to introduce you to my boyfriend, Carson McKay, but I"ve heard you"ve already met."
"You have a death wish showin" up here, McKay?" Harland snapped.
Her oldest brother had been born angry. Normally she tiptoed around him, but not anymore. "Why are you even here, Harland? You don"t live here. Who I date doesn"t concern you, so b.u.t.t out."
"The h.e.l.l it doesn"t! You"re my little sister and I"m protecting you. Not only that, you stepping out with a McKay puts us all in a bad light."
Carson"s hand tightened, as did his jaw, but he didn"t speak.
Darren, her blond-haired blue-eyed bruiser of a brother, stepped forward. "We thought we all made it clear that you"re expected to stay away from Carolyn."
"Yeah, what we said to you weren"t suggestions," Stuart tossed out. "But G.o.d"s honest truth, turn around and drive away from here or we"ll fulfill all of them promises."
"Times five," Marshall added.
Thomas said nothing.
Carolyn held her breath when her father opened his mouth.
"Go on and get in the house, Carolyn. We"ll talk about your lapse in judgment later."
"No. I"m not a child. You can"t send me to my room. I"m dating Carson. End of discussion. You all better find a way to deal with it, but if you can"t that"s your issue, not mine."
"Bulls.h.i.t. You"re so d.a.m.n naive, Carolyn. You haven"t been around. You have no idea what kind of lowlife sc.u.m he is."
She glared at Harland. "You haven"t been around me either, so I won"t allow you to sit in judgment of me. Or him. Worry about your own love life and go home to the wife you have waiting there."
Her brothers huffed and puffed but didn"t retort.
Then her father spit a stream of tobacco juice that almost landed on Carson"s boot tip. "I"m just supposed to accept you"re with him? No can do. I raised you better than this."
"Near as I can tell, you didn"t raise her at all," Carson said evenly. "You sent her off to Catholic school to be raised."
"So we should"ve expected because she was sheltered that she"d fall for the first big, dumb cowboy to come along?" Harland sneered.
Carson faced Carolyn. "Sugar, you didn"t tell me you were datin" someone else before you met me."
She bit her tongue to stop the laugh.
"See you got the same smart mouth as your father," her dad said.
Enough. Carolyn pointed at her brothers. "Move so I can get dinner on the table before it burns."
"You go on in. But him?" Her dad gave Carson the stink eye. "A McKay ain"t welcome in my home. Ever."
"That"s enough."
Her brothers and her father turned and looked at Clara West, venturing out the front door.
Carolyn hid her shock. Her mother wore a dress and shoes-not pajamas and slippers. She"d fixed her hair and put on makeup. She leaned heavily on her walker but she was also smiling.
"But Ma-"
"Hush," she said to Harland without taking her eyes off Carson. "Excuse my sons" behavior. Perhaps we should"ve sent them off to Catholic school too."
Carson removed his hat. "It"s a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. West. I see that Carolyn inherited her beauty and gentility from you."
She ignored her brothers rolled eyes, snorts and hostility at the comment as she was focused on the pleasure shining in her mother"s eyes.
"Carolyn is a fine cook. I"m pleased you"ll get a sample of that today. Please come in and share a meal with us." She looked at her husband. "This is my home too and he is welcome in it. So bring another chair to the table."
"Won"t need it," Harland said. "I lost my appet.i.te and I ain"t staying."
"Me neither," said Darren.
Their rude behavior hurt, mostly because she didn"t understand it.
Stuart and Marshall looked torn. They"d have to pay for food in town if they took off. Shooting a last look at their departing brothers, they started up the porch steps.
Only Thomas offered Carson his hand. "Glad to see you came to your senses-even when it looks like most of them got beat outta you last night."
"Sometimes that"s what it takes."
Carolyn grabbed Thomas"s sleeve. "Why were Harland and Darren here?"
"Father Dorian called to talk to Mom about you bringing such a nice Catholic man to church with you and Dad overheard the conversation. He called Harland and Darren for a family meeting. And he was p.i.s.sed when he found out we all knew about you two seeing each other."
"Doesn"t matter now." She tugged on Carson"s hand. "Let"s go."
Her mother sat at the dining room table, speaking in low tones with Marshall and Stuart. They both scowled at Carson.
Great. She"d have to leave Carson in their company while she readied the food.
"Only six place settings, Liebchen. Your father won"t be joining us."
His loss. If he didn"t eat now she wasn"t feeding him later.
Carolyn couldn"t keep track of the conversation with the electric mixer whirring as she whipped the potatoes.
While the gravy thickened, she stacked the place settings and delivered them to the table. Her family knew the drill and distributed plates and silverware.
She brought out the food-roast pork, mashed potatoes, gravy, wheat rolls and a medley of cooked carrots, onions and sugar snap peas. She slid in next to Carson.
"This surely does look like a feast," he said, his eyes firmly on the juicy meat.
"Before we eat, we give thanks," Marshall said. "McKay, since you"re such a nice Catholic man, would you do the honors?"
Carson looked startled a split second before he smiled. "Be happy to." He removed his hat, set it on the sideboard, and bowed his head. "Lord, we thank you for this bounty we are about to receive. We thank you for the rain that sprouted the vegetables and the sun that grew them to their peak of ripeness, and Carolyn"s cookin" skills that turned them into this mouthwatering delight. We thank you for the soil that nurtured the silage that sustained the pig, for the farmers who deal with the muck, mess and stench of a pig farm every day so that we might enjoy this tender, succulent roasted pork, simmering in its own juices and spices. We thank you for the wheat farmers who toil over their grain harvest every fall, for the mills that grind that grain into flour, and the skill of the baker who can mix water, salt, yeast, sugar and flour into the warm, crunchy, melt in your mouth b.u.t.tery rolls before us. Thank you for the family you"ve seen fit to bless us with, and may we always remember to give thanks where thanks are due."
When Carson took a breath, as if to keep going, Carolyn lifted her head. She crossed herself and said, "Amen."
Her brothers and mother followed suit.
Her mother said, "Thank you, Carson, for such a lovely and heartfelt blessing."
Carolyn glanced at her brother who"d offered the dare and smiled to see he"d been put in his place. But her smile dried when she realized she was sitting too far away from her mother to help slice her food into manageable bites. Her arthritis made it difficult to hold utensils and she ate everything with a spoon.
But her mother had a lot of pride which is why she rarely left the house, or ate meals at the table, so Carolyn couldn"t treat her like a child in front of company.
Stuart realized the predicament and dished her up potatoes before pa.s.sing the bowl on. Same with the veggies. When the meat platter reached him, he quickly shredded the pork before he scooped it onto her plate.