herself, holding even more tightly to their hands. The boys were Triciaâs and were never Scottâs no matter what Kip might believe. She and her father had the law on their side.
They stepped outside and Nicole inhaled the fresh, pure air. It was so wonderful to be outdoors.
âI want to see the horses,â Justin said as they stepped off the porch.
âYour uncle said it wasnât allowed.â And there was no way she was running afoul of Kip while on his ranch.
âIf weâre real careful, it will be okay.â
âNot on your life,â Nicole said firmly.
Justin sighed. âThatâs what Uncle Kip always says too.â
One more thing we have in common, Nicole thought with a sense of irony.
âSo where are these puppies?â she asked.
âTheyâre in the barn.â
As they walked, the boys, mostly Justin, brought her up to date on what Uncle Kip had done this morningâfirst he cut himself shaving, then he listened to the market report and made breakfast, then he tried to get Gramma to do her exercises.
What their grandmother had doneâsat and watched television.
What Isabelle had doneâslept in and got into trouble with Uncle Kip.
âIsabelle is fun. Uncle Kip says she has to grow up, but sheâs pretty big already.â
Nicole suspected that Uncle Kip had his hands full with his sister. Isabelle needed a firm hand and guidance. Something, she suspected, Kip was at a loss to enforce.
Justin pulled open the large, heavy barn door then he stopped and held his finger to his lips. âI better go in first because we donât want to scare the mommy dog,â he whispered. âIâll call you when you can come in.â
He walked slowly into the barn and Tristan seemed content to stay behind with Nicole.
The only sound breaking the stillness was the shuffle of Justinâs feet on the barn floor and the song of a few birds that Nicole couldnât identify. She listened, and the quiet pressed down on her ears.
The silence spread out everywhere, huge and overwhelming. For the briefest moment, icy fingers of panic gripped her heart. They were far away from the nearest road, the nearest town.
All alone.
Then she looked down at Tristan, smiling shyly up at her. She watched Justin creeping into the dusty barn. They were completely relaxed here, at home and at peace.
âAnd a little child shall lead them.â
The familiar passage drifted into her mind and she puzzled it over, wondering where it had come from.
Then she remembered. It was from the Bible. Her mother used to read the Bible to her and Tricia.
âYou hold my hand almost as tight as Uncle Kip does when weâre in Calgary,â Tristan whispered.
Nicole started. âIâm sorry,â she said, loosening her grip. âI didnât mean to hurt you.â
He smiled up at her. âThatâs okay. Uncle Kip always says he holds tight because he never wants to let us go. That makes me feel good.â
Nicoleâs heart faltered at his words. Of course the boys would be attached to Kip Cosgrove and he to them. This was the only life the boys had known.
But they werenât Cosgroves, she reminded herself. They were Williamses, in spite of what Kip may claim.
Yet as she followed Justin into the dusky coolness of the barn, she felt her own misgivings come to the fore. Her own memories of being moved from home to home.
But she never returned to her biological home, like these boys were going to. She could never go back to where the people she lived with were related to her by blood, but these boys could. She would give them the true family sheâd never had and in doing so, maybe, just maybeâ
Her thoughts were cut off by the ringing of her phone.
It was her father.
âHey,â she whispered, following Tristan into the dusty pen. The floor was strewn with straw and Justin was crouched in the corner, his behind stuck in the air as he
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