Page 23 of Holly's Valentine Vow

“They’re so excited,” I confess. “Not that I’m not, because I definitely am, but they’re running me ragged because they’re so worried about everything being ‘just right’, you know?”

“I’m glad you’ve got a good man now, Holly,” Mrs. Hester says. “Samuel is too, just so you know.”

I nod then say, “He’s told me. I don’t know how a man as kind and loving as he is could have been so unfortunate with his wife and even his son.”

I mean, I don’t mean to speak ill of the dead, but looking back, Myra’s inability to allow her son to grow up meant he was irresponsible in all things. While I hate it that the girls no longer have their birth father, Rebel is more of a daddy to them than Devin ever was as far as I’m concerned.

“There’s no telling, hon, but he’s a good man,” she reiterates, blushing.

Hmm… Mrs. Hester has been a widow for averylong time. Who knows what’ll happen down the road?

“Well, I have one more stop to make before I head home. Mina and Ruby are keeping an eye on Rebel with help from Grammy, of course,” I tell her, grinning.

Thank goodness for that because he’d manage to talk my two girls into just about anything, knowing him. I’ve already had to take all the keys for every vehicle and put them up, so he doesn’t try to sneak out since he’s not allowed to drive yet.

“Congratulations again, sweetheart.”

“Thanks, Mrs. Hester.”

I sing along to the oldies station as I think about my last purchase. I found a gorgeous silky baby doll length nightgown in a blue satin for our wedding night. It’s probably silly since we’ve been having sex for months, but it’ll be our first time as man and wife, and I wanted something special. I need to take it over to Grammy’s to wash it, of course, but that won’t be a problem. She and Pappy are going to take the girls on a trip for a few days to give us some privacy since we can’t exactly go anywhere for ourhoneymoon just yet. I think that’s why she made sure there were so many meals prepped and frozen, so we could be together.

As I pull into the driveway, I stop and grab the mail, wincing when I see the torn-up grass where Rebel’s bike ended up landing. Pappy’s used his small bobcat to try and regrade the area, but it’s a ditch and that’s not easy to do. Still, every time it rains, he goes out a day later and while the ground is soft, he works on it, so it’s not as bad as it was when it first happened. Unfortunately for me, I saw pictures of the scene after it first happened, complete with the dark stains that I know were my man’s blood. Shaking off the negative thoughts, I thumb through the mail, separating it into piles of ours and theirs.

Getting back into my SUV, I pull up under my carport, park and shut it off, then grab all the bags I can before heading into the house.

“Mama!” Mina exclaims, running toward me. “Guess what?”

“What, sweetie?” I ask, trying not to drop anything as I make my way to the kitchen.

Grammy’s fixing lunch so Ruby and Rebel are already at the table. “Got the mail,” I state, placing Grammy and Pappy’s stack to the side. “Let me wash my hands and I’ll help.”

“Child, I’m almost done,” Grammy replies.

“Now, Mina, what did you want to tell me?” I question since she’s now bouncing up and down like she’s got jumping beans in her britches.

“Daddy took us for a ride!” she squeals.

I glance over at him to see his smirk as he shakes his head just a little bit, so she won’t notice. “How did Daddy take you for a ride?” I ask.

“On his chair!” Ruby shouts.

I start giggling when he bursts out laughing. “Sweetheart, you shoulda seen your face. Priceless, I tell ya, absolutely priceless.”

“All I could think was I had all the keys to everything I could think of in my purse except for Pappy’s truck, because he’s got that while he runs errands,” I admit.

“Babe,” Rebel says, in that tone I’ve come to understand and interpret.

I mean, who knew that one word could mean so many different things? Right now, he’s telling me he thinks I’m hysterical. Whatever. I’m a bride-to-be, I’m allowed a little bit of being a ditz, right?

“So, Grammy? Guess what?” I question, sitting down at the table as she brings over lunch. We’re apparently having homemade chicken and dumplings which is perfect since it’s a bit cool outside.

“What?” she asks.

“Samuel paid for the flowers,” I reply. “And Rebel? The brothers took care of the cake, the cateringandhiring two of the waitresses from the bar to serve at the reception!”

He grins. “Yeah, Ash might’ve mentioned something like that,” he says, before helping Ruby with her plate.

I love how gentle he is with them. He doesn’t baby them, precisely, but treats them at the age they’re at, something I lovebecause Devin would get so frustrated with them when they’d act their ages. He’s currently making sure her food is bite sized, cutting the pieces of chicken so she won’t choke, while Grammy helps Mina. Which leaves me to tuck into my food.

---