her mug with both hands, Josselyn stared into the brown liquid while a blush crept into her cheeks.
“I guess you could say I’m a little interested,” she admitted with a sheepish grin. “After all, the guy is definitely dreamy looking. His son is such a sweet boy—he must be a good dad. Wouldn’t you think?”
“I’ve heard nothing but raves about his services as a physician, but as for his private life, I wouldn’t know. Maybe you should find that out for yourself,” Mikayla suggested impishly.
Josselyn sighed. “I doubt I’ll ever run into Dr. Strickland again. Besides, it was obvious he wasn’t the least bit interested in me.”
“Hmm. How could you tell?”
Josselyn let out a cynical grunt. “As soon as his son mentioned the word wife, he couldn’t get away from me fast enough. And since I never spotted the two of them again, I assume Dr. Strickland must have left the park and taken his son home.”
“I wouldn’t take his sudden disappearance personally,” Mikayla told her. “The man was probably embarrassed that his son said such a thing to you.”
“Now that you mention it, his face did turn a little red,” Josselyn murmured.
“Well, just in case you might actually be interested, I do know that he lives at Strickland’s Boarding House. Old Gene and Melba are his grandparents.”
“Oh. I hadn’t made the connection to the boardinghouse,” Josselyn said. “Do you know if he has any other relatives around Rust Creek Falls?”
“Three cousins, all of them sisters. Claire, Tessa and Hadley. Claire is married to Levi Wyatt and I believe they have a little girl, Bekka. She goes to the day care here in town. Claire cooks for the boardinghouse. Tessa is a graphic designer. She’s married to Carson Drake and they have twins. Hadley is a veterinarian who’s married to Eli Dalton. As far as I know they don’t have any children yet.”
“Hmm. I wonder about his parents or if he has siblings.” She felt her cheeks growing even hotter as Mikayla continued to study her closely. “Forget I said that. Something is wrong with me tonight, Mikayla. I’m saying and thinking things that are completely off the wall. Maybe I need something to eat to get my brain back on track.”
Laughing softly, Mikayla gestured to the other cookie still lying on the tray. “A little sugar should make you forget all about the sexy doctor.”
Josselyn reached for the cookie, but as she bit into the scrumptious treat, she had an uneasy feeling that it was going to be a long time before she managed to push Drew Strickland and his son out of her mind.
Early Monday morning while he waited for Dillon to dress for school, Drew sat at the kitchen table in the boardinghouse, eating the last of his breakfast of toast, bacon and dark black coffee.
Most of the other boarders chose to take their meals in the dining room of the old four-story house, but Drew liked his privacy. Gossiping back and forth across the table wasn’t his thing. And to make matters even more uncomfortable, as soon as the tenants had learned he was a doctor, he was constantly approached for free medical advice.
Dillon, on the other hand, relished sitting around the big dining table and listening in on the conversations. It was no wonder the boy was seven years old going on fifteen, Drew thought wryly. And he could only imagine what Josselyn Weaver had thought when Dillon had blurted out that bit about finding his dad a wife. A full day had passed since the picnic, but the memory of the incident still left Drew smarting.
That afternoon, throughout the short walk from the park back to the boardinghouse, Drew had tried to lecture his son on the right and wrong things to say to a lady. And though Dillon had attempted to show a little remorse at his behavior, it was obvious to Drew that his son wasn’t a bit sorry for all his bold talk.
“Do I hear a sigh over there? Is something wrong with your breakfast?”
Drew glanced over at his cousin Claire, who was busy flipping pancakes on an industrial-sized grill.
“No. Everything tastes great, as usual. Thanks, Claire.”
“Well, you sound like something is wrong. Work getting you down?”
“I love my work. I’m even busier than I thought I would be here in this little town.”
The pretty brunette slipped the browned pancakes onto a warmed plate. “Guess Rust Creek Falls does feel tiny to you after living in Thunder Canyon,” she commented. “You must be missing your parents and your brothers.”
Drew had to admit he’d missed his parents an awful lot when he’d first arrived here in Rust Creek Falls. He hadn’t realized just how much he’d depended on them to keep Dillon corralled until he’d been forced to take on the job by himself. As for his brothers, all four were younger than Drew. Billy and LJ were both ranchers like their father, while Benjamin was a doctor. Trey managed the horse stables at Thunder Canyon Resort. All of them worked long hours, which made it difficult for the brothers to spend much time together.
“I do miss my family,” Drew replied. “To tell you the truth, Claire, I didn’t think I was going to like living in Rust Creek Falls. But the town and the people have grown on me.”
“That’s good. From what I see, Dillon has fallen in love with the place. You might have a hard time getting him to move back to Thunder Canyon.”
“I suppose I should be happy that Dillon’s gotten so close to his great-grandfather. At least he’s not sitting around crying to go home.”
Claire walked over to where he was sitting and looked down at him. “I hear something else in your voice, Drew. Do you resent the fact that Dillon has grown so close to Old Gene?”
Tossing his napkin onto his empty plate, he picked up his coffee cup. “No. I might be a little envious, but I don’t resent it. I suppose what you’re hearing in my voice is a father wondering if he’s raising his son right.”
An understanding smile on her face, Claire walked back over to the stove. “There isn’t a parent alive who doesn’t have doubts about being a good mom or dad. Where Bekka is concerned, I question myself every day.”
That was just normal parenting, Drew thought ruefully. Claire had always been a full-time, hands-on mother. Whereas he’d basically turned his twelve-month-old son over to his parents and asked them to care for the baby. At the time, he’d felt it was the only thing for him to do. Losing Evelyn had jerked the ground from beneath his feet. He could barely function or take care of himself, much less a baby who needed endless attention. Not to mention that every time he’d looked at Dillon’s little face, he’d been consumed with loss and self-blame over his wife’s senseless death.
“You don’t understand, Claire. When Evelyn died—well, I was a pretty worthless human being.”
She frowned at him. “That’s an awful thing to say about yourself, Drew. You were in shock. Anybody in your shoes would’ve been. Evelyn’s car accident was something that rarely happens. A tree toppling onto her car as she drove little Dillon to day care—it was freakish. Nothing about it made sense.
