Cameron's Quest (6 page)
Authors: Lorraine Nelson
“I can’t rightly blame her. Let her have what
she wants. It’s the vows that matter.”
“That’s my line of thought. Ready to hold up
your end of this?”
“Ready.”
They each made half a dozen trips to take
joined Leah where she sat in the living room. She looked tired. The fire in the
fireplace had burned low, so
couple sticks and got it blazing again.
“Time for me to get off my duff and clean the
last bedroom,” said Leah.
“Nope. I can finish up. And I’ll arrange my
things later. Plenty of time, now that the heavy stuff is situated.”
“Are you sure, Uncle Cam? I don’t mind.”
“I’m sure, Leah. Why don’t you go home and get
prettied up? I’ll be by in about an hour to take you both to dinner. Okay?”
“Sounds like a plan,” said
definitely need a shower and a change of clothes before I appear in public.”
“Then get! And thanks for all your help today.”
“No problem. See you later.” Leah and Cal donned
their jackets and opened the door to a chilly evening.
“Feels rather crisp tonight. Dress warm,”
They nodded and headed to their truck.
of sight.
through to the den and the mountain of clothing waiting there, hoping he could
find something halfway decent to wear for their evening out.
****
The last leg of their journey involved constant
chatter from the girls. They were all so excited. For Lacey, the closer they
got to
the harder the knots in her stomach became. She had to keep reminding herself
that
only sent three tickets. But try as she might to relax, anxiety had her in its
grip.
The pilot’s voice came over the speaker,
announcing that they were approaching the
fasten their seat belts. Then he thanked them for flying with Air
“Mama, look! There it is!” said Rena, as
boisterous as ever.
“Buckle up, girls. You heard the pilot.”
“Yes, but isn’t it beautiful? Look at the mountains.”
“Mountains? I thought
window beside Rena. “Oh! They are beautiful.” Below them lay a vast open land
covered in white, but in the near distance majestic snow-topped mountains rose
to meet a clear blue sky.
“The
Abby from the seat in front of her. “He told us the ranch bordered the
“So he did. I guess I just hadn’t expected them
to be so huge,” Lacey said. The plane took a nosedive, slight, but Lacey felt
it just the same. “
here come the Kerrigans.” She laughed in pure delight, her doubts and fears
fading as if they’d never been. Strangely, she felt as if she was coming
home…home to Cameron and the love that had never died.
Four
After arriving at the airport a full hour early,
with angst. His body was tied in knots. What if they’d changed their minds?
What if they hadn’t boarded the plane after all? Had they hit bad weather? Were
they stranded somewhere? Would the flight be on time?
A quick glance at the arrivals board proclaimed
their flight due to arrive on time. Phew! At least that was good news. He’d
spent most of the past hour on the mezzanine level, watching the arriving and
departing planes. Now he was waiting by the
airport’s customs clearance area and the international baggage claim carousel.
Their flight had left
quick calculation in his head. Geesh! Fourteen hours and fifteen minutes
traveling time.
a body. He always slept during overseas flights, but if the girls were half as
excited as he was, they’d be chattering non-stop the entire flight.
His attention was diverted by yet another plane
circling overhead. Was it them?
“Air
at gate twenty-eight,” said a disembodied voice over the intercom.
The announcement couldn’t have made him any
happier. Surely, they would’ve called if they’d missed their flight. They had
to be on this plane. They just had to be.
not to turn on his phone to check his voice messages or email. Karma, fate,
whatever it was. He figured if he didn’t receive a message, they had to arrive
as scheduled. Yes, they’d be here. He’d see them soon, and then his worries
would be over. Concourse B was jet-bridged to the arrival gate, so he wouldn’t
get to see his lovely ladies until they cleared customs. He ordered his
umpteenth coffee and waited.
****
Lacey and her daughters waited until most of the
passengers had disembarked before grabbing their hand luggage from the overhead
compartment. Although anxious to see
Lacey hated crowds. She smiled. Except when those crowds were waiting on a
table at the bistro.
Her daughters had slept through part of the
flight, for which she was grateful. Their constant chatter had begun to wear on
her already thin nerve endings. She couldn’t really blame them though. This was
their first trip outside
was
exciting. Lacey wondered for the
gazillionth time what life on Thunder Creek was like. She’d researched ranching
on the Internet and watched a few western movies with the girls, but looking at
the vast, open stretches of land below them just before landing, she was
beginning to think her research was for nothing. It was beautiful country, but
how did people live in such isolation?
She straightened her shoulders as she marched
beside her daughters up through the pedestrian tunnel that would lead them to
Think
positive! This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Make it a memorable one, for
yourself, and for the three gorgeous redheads walking with you.
“Oh, oh. I think we made a mistake by waiting.
Sorry, girls. It seems we’ll be the last ones through customs. I hadn’t thought
about the line-up here.”
“No problem, Mama,” said Rena. “Just look at the
cowboy man candy. Aren’t they hunky?”
“Rena, behave yourself,” Lacey admonished in a
low voice as Lynne and Abby giggled.
“Ah, come on, Mama. We’re in
little.” Rena openly flirted with one of the “hunky cowboys” near them in line,
soon starting up a conversation with him.
They cleared customs and collected their
luggage. When she stepped through the glass door behind her girls, the crowd
thinned and she saw him, sitting across the aisle in plain view. He was smiling
as he stood to greet them before sauntering their way, larger than life.
had been chatting up. His swagger drew the eye of every woman in close
proximity, including her daughters.
Always the drama queen, as soon as Rena spotted
him, she acted. “Daddy!” she shouted as she flew toward him to be grasped
tightly in strong arms.
A surprised, yet endearing expression crossed
his face at being called daddy for the first time. He swept Rena up and swung
her around and then did the same with Lynne and Abby. When it was her turn, she
expected the same treatment, anticipated it even. Instead, he gathered her to
him and kissed her like there was no tomorrow. Her heart pounded madly in her
chest, and her knees turned to jelly. If he hadn’t held her upright, she
would’ve made a terrible spectacle of herself.
“I wasn’t sure you’d come,” he whispered for her
ears alone.
She reached up and cradled his cheeks. “I missed
you.”
Simply said, the words held a wealth of meaning.
“Let’s go home.”
“We’d better. We’re causing quite a stir.” Lacey
laughed self-consciously, not used to public displays of affection. And the
attention bestowed on her girls by an admiring public was causing her to worry.
Just then, a flash went off.
“Good afternoon, sir,” said a man holding a
camera. “Aren’t you Cameron Manning?”
At
he continued, “My name is Mark Matthews. Your family has been in the news a lot
this past year. I couldn’t help noticing the four beautiful redheads
surrounding you. You make quite a picture. I work for the
Calgary Herald
. Do you mind posing for a photo and answering a few
questions?”
shoulders. The girls swarmed in closer with Rena already hamming it up for the
camera. Mark took pictures and asked questions. Then he passed them a business
card and went on his way.
“Well, that was exciting,” said Lynne.
“Yeah, kind of. Does that mean we’re celebrities
now or something?” Abby asked.
you girls go, you attract your share of second glances. But to answer your
question, the Manning family is well known in these parts.”
“Wow! Our first day on Canadian soil, and we’re
famous,” Rena exclaimed, laughing.
“You ladies must be hungry. Want to grab a bite
to eat before we head to the ranch?”
Lacey answered for them all. “Not hungry, just
tired, or at least I am. We’ve been anxious to see the ranch. Do you mind?”
“Not at all, my dear.”
Just then the reporter came back pushing a
luggage cart ahead of him. “I thought you might be able to use this.” He
grinned, looking at the pile of luggage.
“Sweet!” said Lynne.
Lacey smiled back. “That was thoughtful of you.”
“I’ll even play porter to spend more time with
the loveliest ladies here today.”
Rena walked beside Mark as they headed to the
truck.
“When I found out you were coming, it was a good
excuse to trade in my old truck for an extended cab four-by-four. It has a full
bench seat in the back.”
“Good thinking, but I’m sorry you had to go to
such an expense,” Lacey said, her voice shaky.
“Not a problem. I was overdue for a new one.”
Lacey suspected he lied to make her feel more comfortable,
but she went along with the ploy. “Boys and their toys.”
“Exactly.” He grinned and turned to help Mark
with their luggage. “Thank you. When can we expect to see your article?”
“Tomorrow’s edition. I can hand-deliver one if
you’d like.”
Lacey smiled at the young man’s enthusiasm,
knowing her daughters were the cause.
“Not necessary,” said
“We have it delivered already.”
Mark’s expression was downcast for only a
moment. “Okay. Gotta run now if my story is to make the morning edition. Nice meeting
you.”
“Thanks for your help,” Lacey said as she
huddled in her coat. The air sure was frosty.
“No problem, ma’am.”
“Ma’am? Did that boy just call me ma’am?” Lacey
asked.
girls. “Yes, ma’am. It’s a common greeting around here. A show of respect
actually.”
“Oh.”
“Come on, my lovelies. Climb in and have a seat.
Thunder Creek awaits.”
The girls scrambled into the back, and
passenger seat.
“Buckle up.”
The day was cool, the wind much colder than they
were used to.
because he pulled into a Tim Horton’s and ordered coffee and heated muffins for
all.
