Miracle Road es-7 Read online

  She closed her eyes and absorbed the hurt. This was the way it happened now, five years later. Rather than being her constant companion, the pain would slither up and strike when she wasn’t prepared or braced for it.

  “‘Beware the Ides of March,’” she softly quoted.

  She shut her planner and set it aside, then reached for her coffee. Her hand trembled as she raised the china cup to her mouth, but she concentrated on savoring both the smell and the taste of the aromatic, full-bodied brew. Using her senses helped anchor her to the present, and besides, the coffee at Angel’s Rest Healing Center and Spa was truly sublime.

  Nevertheless, she teetered on the brink of tears until Celeste Blessing swept into the old Victorian mansion’s parlor saying, “I’m so sorry I’m running late, Hope. It’s been one thing after another today. First we had a plumbing problem in the showers beside the hot springs pools, then one of our guests suffered a death in the family, the poor dear, and I helped arrange emergency transportation home. Finally, my sister phoned, and I’m afraid I lost track of time.”

  Hope stood and smiled at the vital, active, older woman whom she’d come to view as the matriarch of Eternity Springs. The owner of Angel’s Rest, Celeste wore black slacks, a gold cotton blouse, and a harried smile.

  “Celeste, I love your new haircut,” Hope said.

  “Thank you. I do, too.” Celeste lifted a hand to fluff the short, sassy style, her blue eyes twinkling. “One of my male guests told me I look just like Judi Dench. He’s an old flirt and I think he was hoping for a discount on his bill, but I’ll accept the compliment.”

  “As well you should,” Hope agreed. “He’s right.”

  “Thank you, dear. I’m going to tell my sister you said that.” Celeste wrinkled her nose as she added, “She told me I was too old for this style.”

  Hope couldn’t help but smile. She had met Celeste and her sister when they’d rented the South Carolina beach house next door to Hope’s vacation rental the spring before last. The sisters had caught Hope crying on the beach one March morning, and they’d offered comfort to a stranger and changed the path of Hope’s life. Like most sisters, they’d bickered, but the love they shared had been obvious. Hope could picture Desdemona making the hairstyle remark to Celeste. “How is Desi doing these days?”

  “She’s well. Busy, but then, aren’t we all? She tells me she’s let her hair grow and dyed it bright red.”

  Mentally picturing the tall, flamboyant woman, Hope grinned. “Is she still traveling quite a bit?”

  “Constantly. As a result we don’t have the opportunity to see each other as often as we’d like. I’m trying to convince her to visit Eternity Springs sometime soon. She asked me to tell you hello and to blame her for my tardiness, but we’re both to blame. It was downright rude of me to ask for a ride to the baby shower and then not be ready on time. Please forgive me.”

  “Don’t be silly, Celeste. We have plenty of time.” Besides, no matter how happy Hope was for the expectant parents, baby showers were always a little tough for her. She thought that being with Celeste might make the day easier. “Your front desk worker gave me a cup of spectacular coffee, and I used the time to my benefit, looking over some of the paperwork Principal Geary gave me this morning. It’s hard to believe that school starts in just three weeks.”

  Hope picked up her purse and slipped the strap over her shoulder. “Can I help you carry anything?”

  “Thank you. I have a few gifts in the kitchen.”

  Celeste led Hope down the hallway toward the kitchen. Upon entering the cheery room, Hope stopped and laughed. The kitchen table was covered in gaily wrapped and ribboned packages and bags, all in nursery themes in shades of a beautiful baby blue. “A few bags?”

  “It’s the latent grandmother in me, I fear. I just love buying for little ones.”

  Hope’s smile softened to bittersweet as she recalled stacks of pink onesies and a closet full of ruffles. “I do, too.”

  They loaded the gifts into Hope’s crossover SUV, chatting about the presents they’d chosen. This would be Hope’s first visit to Jack and Cat Davenport’s mountain estate, Eagle’s Way, and she looked forward to seeing it. She’d heard it was fabulous.

  They picked up two more passengers for the drive, Maggie Romano and her daughter, Gabi. An attractive widow in her early fifties, Maggie was the newest full-time resident of Eternity Springs, having relocated at the beginning of the summer to be nearer to two of her adult children. Gabi was the town’s deputy sheriff, though with her long legs and high cheekbones and her mother’s beautiful blue eyes, she could have been a model if she’d wanted. Hope was in the early stages of friendship with the Romano women. She liked them both very much, but considering her history, she was cautious about letting anyone get too close. Experience had taught her that people invariably got too nosy, or they failed to be a friend when she needed one the most.

  Celeste Blessing had been the lone exception. Being around Celeste was like slipping into Angel’s Rest’s inviting hot springs pools—sans the sulfur smell—on a cold winter’s night. She simply made Hope feel better. She’d planted the seed about moving to Eternity Springs during those beach house days, then nurtured the notion with phone calls. Once Hope expressed real interest in making the change, Celeste had championed her with the principal and school board. One job offer later, Hope packed her bags for a fresh start in a place that called to her, instead of in a place she’d run to, like the last move she’d made.

  The four women made small talk as their trip commenced. Gabi relayed a story about the sheriff’s office dispatcher’s unfortunate experience with online dating, and with the laughter the story elicited, the melancholy that had lingered within Hope after the unfortunate lesson planner incident began to dissolve. She turned onto the road that climbed out of the valley, and her spirits rose along with it.

  They were halfway up the ridge when Maggie observed, “I’ve not been up this road before. What a spectacular view!”

  “Isn’t it lovely?” In the front passenger seat, Celeste twisted around to speak with Maggie directly. “This is one of my favorite Gold Wing rides. There’s a scenic overview before the turnoff to Jack and Cat’s place where you can look down on Eternity Springs. It just makes me feel good to be there. And when I travel on up to the highest point of the road, I sometimes feel like I can reach into the sky and touch heaven.”

  “Maybe I’ll have to get a motorcycle,” Maggie mused. “We could form a gang, Celeste.”

  Gabi let out a groan and buried her head in her hands as Celeste laughed out loud.

  It was a beautiful summer afternoon. Temperatures hovered in the mid-seventies. Snow-capped peaks climbed into a sapphire sky dotted with puffy white clouds. The road wound around a mountainside to reveal an alpine meadow carpeted with wildflowers. “Oh, how gorgeous,” Hope observed. “What are those purple-blue flowers called?”

  “Gentians. They’re one of my favorites,” Celeste said. “Up near Heartache Falls they … oh dear.”

  Hope braked to a stop as they came upon a small herd of bighorn sheep congregated on the road in front of them. Celeste clucked her tongue. “These animals are becoming my nemesis. This is the third time they’ve delayed me this month. Sarah Murphy will have my guts for garters if we’re late to the shower.”

  “We have plenty of time,” Hope assured her.

  “Yes, but Sarah is not her usual cheery self these days. I need a distraction. What’s the latest on your project, Maggie?”

  Gabi rolled her big blue eyes and groaned a second time. Her mother sniffed with disdain, then beamed at Celeste. “Actually, I have exciting news. Jim Sutton has accepted my offer for his great-grandmother’s Victorian on Aspen Street. With a little renovation, it will make a perfect B&B.”

  “That is exciting news,” Celeste said.

  “Congratulations.” Hope’s brows knit as she tried to place the house. “On Aspen, you say? Which house is it?”

  “The y
ellow one between Fifth and Sixth.”

  Hope realized Maggie must be referring to the dilapidated three-story whose faded, flecking paint sometimes floated on the air like dandruff. She pictured an overgrown yard, broken shutters, rotted gingerbread trim, and plywood-covered windows.

  “It needs a little work,” Maggie added, as if reading Hope’s mind.

  “And Murphy Mountain is a little hill,” Gabi drawled.

  “Now, honey …”

  Gabi slipped on a pair of designer sunglasses. “Zach is quaking in his hiking boots. I heard him tell Savannah to be quick and hide his tool belt.”

  “I promised I wouldn’t ask your brother to help,” her mother protested. “He’s the sheriff, for heaven’s sake. He doesn’t have time to be my handyman.”

  “I’m the sheriff’s deputy,” Gabi whined. “Why am I instructed to report for cleaning duty first thing Saturday morning?”

  “Zach gets newlywed dispensation. Besides, he and Savannah won’t be home from their trip to South Carolina to visit her nephew until late Friday night. I won’t try to drag him out of bed early Saturday morning.”

  “He’s so your favorite.”

  “Right now, yes.”

  The exchange surprised Hope. In her experience, mothers denied the existence of a favored child even if the charge was true. Taking her attention off the bleating roadblock that was finally beginning to move, she glanced into the rearview mirror to observe the Romano women.

  Gabi caught her look and flashed a grin. “It’s okay, Hope. Zach is due a turn at being favorite.”

  She wanted to ask why, but she wasn’t that nosy. Celeste obviously didn’t share her concerns. “Hope moved to Eternity Springs in January, so she wasn’t here for all the excitement last August. She probably doesn’t know your family history. Tell her about Zach, Maggie. She loves happy endings as much as I do.”

  “It is a happy ending, isn’t it?” Maggie sighed with pleasure, then explained. “I’ll share the short version, Hope. Our family is dealing with a rather unique situation. I got pregnant with Zach when I was fifteen and I gave him up for adoption. Gabi and her brothers tracked him down and we were reunited last year, so I have a lot of pent-up love to shower upon him.”

  Oh. A lost child, found. Hope’s throat grew tight.

  “Mom has always been a big proponent of sibling equality when it comes to parental favoritism, so my sibs and I understand it’s Zach’s turn,” Gabi added. “That doesn’t mean the rest of us won’t complain about it. Especially under current circumstances. I can’t be your handyman, either, Mom. It’s too big a job. You need a contractor—shoot, you need a miracle worker—if you’re going to turn that broken-down behemoth into a bed and breakfast.”

  “I know, Gabriella. I actually have something different in mind. Someone different. I know a man who is good with his hands who desperately needs a project. He’s a hard worker who needs a miracle.”

  “A miracle? Who do you know who needs … oh. Lucca.”

  “He’s one of your twins, isn’t he?” Celeste asked Maggie. “The one who coaches for Colorado?”

  “No. That’s Anthony. Lucca took the Landry University Bobcats to the Sweet Sixteen last March. Then he … well …”

  “He wigged out,” Gabi said, a bite of temper in her voice. “He quit his job and took off, didn’t tell the family where he’d gone. He invested his NBA contract money wisely, so he has the means to do that sort of thing, but running off without any word like he did … he acted like a total jerk and it hurt us. I’m warning you, Mom. It’s going to take some time for me to forgive him. And what makes you think he’ll come here anyway? According to Max and Anthony and Zach, he’s perfectly happy lounging in his Mexican beach chair and getting drunk on tequila and tugging the ties on bikinis. He has absolutely no intentions of ever coming back.”

  Maggie squared her shoulders. “He’s my son. I have not begun to utilize all the weapons in my arsenal. He will come.”

  Hope followed college sports, so she’d made the connection between her new friends and the well-known collegiate basketball coaches. She’d been aware that Lucca Romano had publicly crashed and burned and alienated the power brokers in his professional field, and soon after meeting Maggie and Gabi, she’d yielded to temptation and Googled him for more detail on the incident.

  Hope recognized that the man had suffered a tragedy, and she sympathized with his pain. She did not, however, respect the way he’d chosen to deal with it. Quit everything, quit on everyone, and run off to become a drunken beach bum? It demonstrated a distinct lack of character as far as she was concerned. His mother must be so disappointed in him.

  “I hope you’re right, Mom,” Gabi said. “I’m not so optimistic. I’m afraid you’re going to be hurt.”

  “He’ll come,” Maggie replied, her blue eyes gleaming with confidence. “Now, look at that beautiful iron sculpture up on our right. It’s an eagle in flight. How graceful.”

  Celeste nodded. “That’s our Sage’s work, a gift to Jack.”

  “So this is Eagle’s Way?” Hope asked. “We’re here?”

  “Yes.” Celeste checked her watch, then beamed. “With three minutes to spare, thank the dear Lord.”

  They drove through an open gate and along a road that wound through a meadow painted with wildflowers. The large, sprawling house was built in the traditional mountain-log-home style, with windows facing what had to be one of the best views in Colorado. “Wow,” Hope said.

  “Wait until you see the inside,” Celeste said. “And the patio and pool area. Gabe Callahan is a landscape architect, and what he designed is perfect for such a heavenly spot.”

  Jack Davenport stood on the front steps, and he waved at Hope to pull her car onto a circular driveway where Cam Murphy, Gabe Callahan, and Colt Rafferty stood acting as valets. “Hello, dears,” Celeste said, climbing from the car. “I’m surprised to see you here. I thought the girls decided they wanted a traditional females-only baby shower.”

  “We’re just here to provide muscle,” Jack said. “As soon as everyone arrives and all the loot is hauled inside, we have a date with fishing rods and the creek.”

  “You have a lovely home,” Hope told him.

  “Thanks. We do love it up here.”

  Just then the front door opened and Nic Callahan called, “Thank goodness you are here. Sarah and Cat are ready to get this party started.”

  “Are we the last to arrive?”

  “Rose is running late, but she had a patient. She’s asked us to start without her.”

  Hope stepped into the great room, and her gaze was torn between three gorgeous sites: snowcapped mountains displayed like a fine-art painting through the wall of windows; a glowing Cat Davenport holding her sleeping four-month-old son, Johnny, in her arms; and Sarah Murphy, sprawled in an overstuffed easy chair, her feet propped up on an ottoman, a grumpy scowl on her face, and a baby belly so big that Hope wondered if she might be having a litter rather than a single baby boy.

  “Sarah, you look beautiful,” Hope told her.

  “You are a liar, Hope Montgomery, but I appreciate the effort.”

  “How do you feel, darling?” Celeste asked.

  “Fat. Grouchy. Ugly. Fat. My back hurts. I haven’t seen my feet in weeks. My so-called friend and neonatologist tells me I could go another week, curse her black heart.”

  The physician in question, Sage Rafferty, rolled her eyes. “I’m not your doctor, Sarah. I gave you my personal opinion, not my professional one.”

  Sarah pouted, then turned to Nic. “Sage is right. I should have asked you instead of her. You’re a vet. I’m a cow. When should I head for the barn and lie down on the straw? Or would I stand up? Do cows have their babies lying down or standing up?”

  “Mother,” Lori Murphy chastised, her expression long-suffering. “Just stop it. The baby is healthy and you are healthy and you look lovely.”

  “Your father called me a whale!”

  As one, the women in
the room gasped.

  “No, he didn’t.” Lori explained to the others, “He called her a great white because she’d just bitten his head off for accidentally sloshing coffee onto the kitchen floor.”

  “It was clean. I want a clean house when I go into labor. But I shouldn’t have snapped at him, and he spoke the truth. Big fish, big bovine … what’s the difference? I’m fat! I wanted this baby very much, but why couldn’t I have a little bump like Cat had? I’m bigger than Nic was and she had twins! I’m a blimp and I’m ugly and I’m too old to be doing this. What woman has her first and second children more than twenty years apart? I can’t do this!”

  Hope blinked. Was the normally confident, composed Sarah Murphy sliding toward the edge?

  “Sure, you can.” Nic Callahan crossed the room to sit on the arm of Sarah’s chair. “And I thought this was supposed to be a baby shower, not a pity party.”

  Sarah’s lips quirked. “Can’t it be both? I’m a hundred and twelve months pregnant.”

  “I’ll bet you didn’t sleep last night, did you?”

  “Not much. Between the heartburn and his constant kicking and the fact he has his butt right on top of my bladder … and his father snores!”

  “You’ve never done well when you’re short on sleep.”

  “Newborns don’t sleep. I’m going to be a terrible mother.”

  “You’re a wonderful mother,” Lori protested. “The best. And this time, Cam will be around to help.”

  Sarah sniffed. “I love you, Lori. And I love your father and my friends. I love our baby. I have a wonderful life. I don’t know why I’m being such a witch.”

  “It’s the late-pregnancy hormones,” Sage said.

  “I hope it is hormones and not the new me. But my emotions are a mess. I’m happy and excited, but I’m also anxious and nervous and worried. At sixteen I was too young and stupid to know what the deal was. Now, I know what it means to parent and I’m scared to death.”

  “Of course you are,” Nic said. “That’s normal.”

  “She’s right,” Ali Timberlake chimed in. “Every mother-to-be is a little bit afraid.”