Dare to Believe

His smile was sour. “Let’s just say they have long memories.”

She whistled, not surprised when he turned his attention back to his driving. He was silent the entire way to the farm, his hands occasionally clenching the steering wheel. From the expression on his face she’d bet anything he was picturing his brother’s kidnappers.

She stayed silent for the rest of the ride, eventually nodding off with her head against the window.

It was dark when Leo finally pulled into his father’s farm. All of the lights were on in the old Victorian house, but that didn’t surprise him. When he’d told his family he was bringing someone with him, he’d known they would be more than curious. He’d never brought a woman home with him before.

And even if he had, he’d never bring an ordinary woman home with him under the current circumstances.

He pulled the truck to a stop in front of his parents’ home, not surprised that there were no cars other than ones belonging to the immediate family there. He turned off the ignition and turned in his seat to face Ruby.

She was just beginning to wake up, staring around at, to her, unfamiliar surroundings. He watched her react to the farmhouse, her eyes going wide at the sight of the large Victorian home. “We’re here.” His voice was husky with fatigue.

She turned to him, looking oh so weary. “It’s all right, Leo. They’ll find him.”

Her comfort warmed the cold place that had settled in around the pit of his stomach. When she placed one small hand against his cheek, he knew that if he hadn’t already started to fall in love with her he’d have Dare to Believe

lost his heart then and there. He turned his face into her palm and kissed it, accepting the comfort she was offering. “Thank you.”

She didn’t question what he was thanking her for. She just waited in the car while he came around to help her out with a sleepy smile that went straight to his heart.

“Leo.”

He turned to find his father standing on the porch, staring down at him with his hands on his hips, the porch light gleaming off his midnight dark hair. Blue eyes the color of a summer sky frowned down at him.

“Get her inside. It’s cold out here.”

That Irish brogue, sure and steady, washed through him, calming him just as it had when he’d been a child.

His father turned to Ruby, smiling a warm yet sad welcome. “Welcome to my home.”

His home? I thought Leo’s parents still owned the farm? Ruby watched the man, who looked to be no more than a few years older than Leo, walk down the porch steps. His long, determined stride reminded her vividly of the way Leo moved. The man walked up to them, and Leo put his arm around her shoulder and hugged her close to the warmth of his big body.

She was pulled up short when the man clasped his hand around Leo’s arm. “Welcome home, son.”

His voice held the lilt of Ireland in it, full of warmth that had been missing briefly when he’d first appeared on the porch.

Leo turned to the other man, and suddenly the two were embracing. “Wish the homecoming was under better circumstances, Dad.”

Wait. Dad?

That dark haired, walking sex advertisement was Leo’s dad?

“Dad, I’d like you to meet Ruby Halloway. Ruby, this is Sean Dunne.”

The man lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “Welcome, Miss Halloway. I wish we’d met under better circumstances.”

“Thank you, Mr. Dunne. I’m so sorry about your son.”

Leo’s father nodded, his expression shadowed. “Thank you.” He turned to Leo, the shadows disappearing. “Take your woman inside and introduce her properly to your mother. She’s waiting on you.”

The man took the keys from Leo and walked to the trunk of the SUV. He turned and winked at her, popped the trunk open and began to remove their bags.

“C’mon, Ruby. Let’s go introduce you to my mother.”

Ruby couldn’t drag her eyes away from the Irish hunk even though Leo was pulling her up the porch steps. “Wow.”

She didn’t even realize she’d whispered that thought out loud until Leo stopped and frowned down at her. Smiling up at him weakly, she stepped forward, ready for him to open the front door.

The door opened before she could touch it. In front of her stood the most amazingly attractive woman she’d ever seen. She wasn’t much taller or older than Ruby. The woman’s hair fell to her waist, a straight, shining curtain of glowing red-gold. Slightly tilted green eyes the color of emeralds peeked out from under the longest, most lush lashes Ruby had ever seen. Her chin was delicately pointed, her nose fine and aristocratic, her lips full and pink. She stared up at Leo, those lips trembling.

Suddenly, Ruby wasn’t feeling so good. The woman was looking at Leo with a love so deep Ruby was moved by it. If he had this woman waiting for him to come home, why had he brought Ruby?

“Welcome home, Leo.” The woman stepped into his welcoming arms, tears falling down her exquisite face.

“Hi, Mom.”

Ruby unclenched her hands, just then realizing she’d been clenching them.

Of course. Mom. Dad’s a sex god, and Mom’s a cover model. I wonder what Shane and Moira look like? Ruby had never felt quite so frumpy in her life. She was wrinkled from head to toe, her hair a mess, her eyes heavy with fatigue, her makeup long since worn off. Her self confidence took a severe hit. She took a step back, not wanting to intrude on Leo’s reunion with his mother.

She didn’t get very far. One hard hand fell on her arm, pulling her forward. Leo put his other arm around his mother’s shoulder. “Mom, I’d like you to meet Ruby Halloway. Ruby, this is my mother, Aileen Dunne.”

“I am pleased to meet you, Ruby. Be welcome in my home.” The woman’s soft brogue had a hint of Great Britain in it, changing it slightly from the pure Irish purr of her husband’s voice.

“Thank you, Mrs. Dunne.” Ruby held out her hand in greeting.

Mrs. Dunne promptly took possession of it, pulling Ruby into the house behind her. “Now, call me Aileen, please. And did that son of mine remember to bring everything you need, or did he drag you out of the house so quickly your head spun?”

“Um, number two.”

Aileen turned a dark look over her shoulder, and that was when Ruby finally believed that the stunning woman before her really was Leo’s mother. No one but a mother could look at a man like that, part exasperation, part love.

“It was a bit of an emergency, Mom.” Ruby turned to see Leo pushing his hand through his hair, grimacing slightly. “I made sure her cat was taken care of, didn’t I?”

Aileen sighed, a sound that only a mother could make, and pulled both of them into her house. Ruby bit her lip on a nervous giggle, knowing laughter wouldn’t be welcome at the moment.

Leo watched Ruby get her first glimpse of his family home. The cream-colored walls and dark, sturdy wooden furniture wasn’t his taste, but his parents adored the old-style look they’d managed to achieve.

They’d blended early American with a number of pieces they’d moved from Ireland for a look that was uniquely their own. Framed prints of Ireland mingled with family portraits they’d had taken by mortals.

The dark green fabrics of the furniture mingled with the softer, cheerful yellows his mother had strewn about the room in the form of pillows and flowers. The only odd note was an amethyst vase Leo had bought his mother for her birthday two years ago, sitting in pride of place on the mantelpiece. Leo felt a small pang when he saw it. He had to make the effort to get home more often. He hadn’t realized how much he missed his family until he saw them.

Ruby, he saw, absorbed it all, her eyes going from object to object while his mother led them into the kitchen.

Moira was busy stirring a pot of stew, her red-gold hair falling in a long braid down her back. Her deep blue eyes, startling in her pale face, shot to his, so full of relief and arrogance he was astonished.

His baby sister had grown up quite a bit while he’d been gone.