“I can offer that,” she said with a low laugh. “No hollering.”
“Shari appreciates that you were happy when you found out,” he said. “And...I appreciate that, too. We haven’t gotten a lot of congratulations yet.”
“I’m sorry,” she said. “But I am happy for you. You’ve got me, at least.”
And her little brother was calling her when he was in a bind. That meant more to her than he probably realized. She was Brian’s family, after all—the last he had left in this state, at least.
“Can you come now?” Brian asked. “Be there in say, an hour?”
Olivia looked up to find Sawyer and Lloyd staring at her. The toddlers were still playing with their food, but the men were watching her in open curiosity, their own conversation seemingly forgotten.
“Let’s say yes, and if that changes, I’ll call you,” she said.
“Fair enough,” her brother replied. “See you soon. I hope.”
Olivia hung up the call and tucked her phone away. She smiled hesitantly. “That was Brian,” she said. “And things have gotten complicated for him.”
“How so?” Sawyer asked.
“His girlfriend’s family have just found out that she’s pregnant.” Olivia licked her lips. “And they’re against the idea of those two getting married.”
“Sounds familiar,” Sawyer said. “Minus the pregnancy.” He frowned, looking over at Lloyd. “Right?”
“Right.” Lloyd nodded.
“I said I’d go down and talk with Brian and his girlfriend. They just need a sounding board, I think—someone who’s actually happy about their baby on the way. Did you want to come with me?” she asked Sawyer. “Maybe another male perspective would help out. I’m not sure what to expect, though.”
Sawyer looked toward his uncle.
“I can take a couple of hours with the girls,” Lloyd offered. “Evelyn might even like it.”
Sawyer was silent for a beat, then nodded.
“Yeah, sure. I can come along,” Sawyer said.
“Thank you.” Olivia shot him a relieved smile. “Because I have no easy answers for these two. So say a prayer for us, Lloyd. We’re going to need it.”
Chapter Eleven
Looking around town, Sawyer had started to feel a vague sense of nostalgia for a history he couldn’t quite recall. It was a step forward. Mug of Mocha was a small coffee shop in downtown Beaut, with a few tables on a patio outside where a couple of older guys sat, paper coffee cups in front of them, and dogs lying at their feet. Sawyer held the door for Olivia, and she went inside first. He had no idea what to expect here today. He’d come to be a support for Olivia, not because he was some wellspring of wisdom when it came to young love. He couldn’t remember his own.
Once inside, Olivia headed for a table at the back where a young cowboy Sawyer recognized from Sunday at church sat with his hat on the table, his hair mussed. The young woman next to him looked wan and a bit scared.
“Hi,” Olivia said, sliding onto the bench opposite them. “This is Sawyer. Sawyer, this is Shari.”
Sawyer and Shari exchanged smiles. There was a brief round of greetings, and then Olivia reached out and put a hand over Shari’s.
“How are you, though, Shari?” Olivia asked quietly. “You look like it’s been tough.”
“It has been.” Shari’s eyes welled, and she dabbed at them with a crumpled tissue.
“How far along are you now?” Olivia asked.
“Three months,” Shari said. She dropped her gaze.
“How did your family find out?” Olivia asked.
“I...told them.” Shari swallowed. “I don’t know... It’s a big secret to keep, and I told my mom. I’m having a baby...it’s huge. I wanted her support, I guess. I knew she’d be upset, but I didn’t expect that much disappointment. Or anger.”
Sawyer glanced toward Brian. The young man sat silent.
“How long have you been together now?” Sawyer asked him.
“Six months,” Brian said.
“Well, seven if you count when you first held my hand—” Shari added.
“Yeah, okay, seven months, I guess.”
The young couple exchanged a bashful smile. Seven months. It wasn’t really long, and here they were expecting a child together. He could remember the birth of his own girls now, and it was not only a traumatic event, but it was the kind of thing that made a man. Granted, his introduction to fatherhood was more intense because he’d lost his wife at the same time, but being a father—even without his memory—had grounded him and given him a sense of responsibility. Nothing was about him anymore—it was now about his little girls.
Olivia scooted along the bench closer to Shari, and Sawyer leaned his elbows on the table, watching the women talk in lowered voices.
“Hey, man,” Brian said with a nod. “How’re you feeling?”
“Not bad,” Sawyer said with a wan smile. “Remembering more every day, so...”
“You don’t remember me yet, huh?” Brian asked with a small smile.
“It’ll come back,” Sawyer said with a shrug. He hated this—admitting how limited he was right now. But a few more memories were surfacing—conversations while riding herd, the way the land rolled out in front of him when he was on horseback surrounded by slowly moving cattle, and the smell of the countryside in high summer.
He’d also started to remember Mia last night. Not huge things, but the way she’d laugh or this really flat look in her eyes when she was good and mad. Apparently, he’d managed to make her mad often enough for that look to be a memory that surfaced before her laughter had. He was still glad to remember it. His life was coming back to him in teaspoon measurements—enough that he could recognize just how inexperienced these two were.
“So, what are you going to do?” Sawyer asked.
Brian cracked his knuckles and frowned, but didn’t say anything.
“Because the way I see it, you love this woman.
