Chapter 85

“If I don’t fall asleep.” Charlie chuckled and waved as he left.

Wade finished with Stardust and made sure she was set for the night, then made a beeline for the house. He wanted to talk to Casey about what Charlie had shared. The wind whipped around him as he exited the barn and the first snowflakes made their appearance, swirling through the air. He tugged his coat closer to his body and hurried into the house

“No muddy boots in my kitchen!”

“Taking them off right now,” he assured Lorna from the mudroom. The scent of apple cider filled the room and he was anxious to see what other delectable treats she had for them.

He wasn’t surprised to see Allyson at the stove, pulling out a tray of something that looked suspiciously like gingerbread men, albeit a little rotund.

“Not one word,” she warned as she set the cookie sheet on the oven. “It’s only my first batch. They’re going to get better.”

Wade grinned and reached for one. “They look good to me.”

She swatted away his hand. “You’re going to burn yourself, Wade. You literally just saw me take them out of the oven!”

“Fine. I’ll wait. For a couple of minutes.”

Allyson laughed at him. “Fine, but be gentle. I’m new to this baking stuff.”

“She’s doing a great job,” Lorna insisted from the island as she cut out biscuits from fresh dough.

“One-hundred percent agree,” Casey added, walking in. He kissed her cheek, then eyed the cookies with glee. “She’s great at everything.”

Allyson blushed. “You always say that.”

“Because it’s true.”

Wade and Lorna glanced at each other and smiled. It was nice to finally see love in the house.

“Where’s Lance?” Wade asked.

“I think he’s at the bunkhouse,” Lorna told him. “He’s sure been over there a lot today.”

“You noticed that, too?” He frowned and turned his attention back to Casey, who was currently trying to remove a too-hot gingerbread man from the cookie sheet. “You know what’s going on?”

Casey dropped the cookie and blew on his fingers.

“Told you,” Allyson muttered.

“With Lance?” Casey asked.

“Yeah. He’s been sneaking off to the bunkhouse. Is he trying to convince Charlie to let him work more night shifts? I don’t want him doing anything dangerous.”

“You think I can’t handle it?”

Everyone turned to find Lance standing in the mudroom doorway, hands on his hips, his eyes on Wade.

“No. No—that’s not what I meant.”

“If I’m part of this family, Wade, I want to help. Yes, I’ve talked to Charlie about adding a couple of extra shifts. But that’s not why I’ve been at the bunkhouse, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

Wade raised an eyebrow at Lance.

“Seriously?” Lance threw up his hands. “Tomorrow is Christmas.”

Wade furrowed his brow in confusion. “You want to help patrol the grounds on Christmas?”

“No, Wade,” Lance said as he moved to stand in front of his husband. “I mean, yes, I do want to help, but I didn’t sign up for Christmas. Charlie understands why I wanted to help and he’s not going to have me running the perimeter alone at night. He’s smarter than that. I’msmarter than that.” He placed his hands on Wade’s chest.

Wade covered Lance’s hands with his. “I’m sorry. I…I just don’t want anything to happen to you. This whole Milton Randle situation has me off kilter.”

“I know. We’re all on edge. But I had no idea you were worried about this.”

“Honestly, I wasn’t until today. It’s just…you keep going to the bunkhouse. It was the only explanation I could come up with.”

Lance smiled. “Tomorrow is Christmas. Our first together. Did it ever occur to you that I might have something hidden out there? For you?”

The tension in Wade’s chest eased and he let out the breath he hadn’t even realized he’d been holding. “Charlie has my present?” He couldn’t keep from grinning.

Lance laughed. “Yes. So quit freaking out. And we’ll talk about the extra shifts later.”

Wade had forgotten they weren’t alone and he glanced at those watching—well, those pretendingthey weren’t watching. Normally, he wasn’t comfortable expressing emotions in front of others, but he couldn’t turn back the clock.

Casey grinned. “The cookies are cooled off some. Want one?”

“Definitely.”

He ended up eating three, but who was counting anyway?

* * * *

Later, they all met in the great room to spend the evening together. Lorna’s egg nog was passed around and there were treats galore on the coffee table.

While Casey had started a blaze in the stone fireplace, Wade had filled him in on Charlie’s uneasy feeling after running into Milton in town. They both agreed something was going to go down, but what Milton would do and when it would happen was a mystery. Getting into that crazy man’s mind wasn’t possible.