He laughed. “Can’t blame the poor girl for having great taste in men, can you?”
No, Raney couldn’t. And she couldn’t make light of what his father said, either. “Maybe your dad’s afraid the Whitcombs will gobble you up and you’ll forget all about him. He’s already given up his ranch and one son. Losing you, too, would be a terrible blow.”
Dalton looked surprised. “He’s not losing me.”
“No? How often have you talked to them, or visited them since they moved?” She saw by the downturn in his expression that he thought she was criticizing. She wasn’t. But she could empathize with his parents because she knew what it felt like to be left behind while everyone else moved on. She didn’t want Dalton to unknowingly make his parents feel that way.
“I’ve visited them twice this week,” he reminded her.
“And look how happy that’s made them. Your mother mentioned several times how much she missed her boys. You should try to visit them a couple of times a month, at least. I’ll go with you, if you’d like. Your mother’s cooking alone would make the trip worthwhile. And maybe you could call more often. Keep them informed about what you’re doing. I can see it means a lot to my mother when she hears from Len and KD.”
He glanced over again. This time his expression was more pensive than defensive. “No wonder you Whitcombs are so close-knit.”
Raney nodded. “Especially since Daddy died. That was a hard lesson about how quickly things could change, and how people could simply disappear from your life without warning. Now speed up. I want to meet my beautiful new niece.”
* * *
Actually, she wasn’t all that beautiful, Raney decided later, when they stood in the corner of Joss’s crowded room, watching a nurse show Grady how to change a baby, while another nurse showed Joss how to work a breast pump.
They had only just arrived and wouldn’t be able to stay long since visiting hours were almost over. Raney had barely had a chance to hold the baby. So tiny, such precious doll-like hands, and barely enough hair to show she’d be blond like her parents. Raney was terrified she’d break her. But didn’t want to let her go.
Then the nurses had come in to show Grady how to swaddle her, and the doctor had breezed through, saying everything had gone well, Joss was doing fine, and the baby’s head should assume a normal shape within a few weeks.
Raney’s horror must have shown. Even Dalton had been struck mute.
On her way out, the doctor had pulled them aside. “It’s nothing to worry about.” She’d gone on to explain that since Joss’s cervix had dilated days before delivery, when the baby’s head dropped into the expanded opening, it caused two small, plum-sized hematomas to form on the back of her head. “It’s superficial. In a few weeks you won’t even notice. Best say your good-byes soon. It’s almost eight.”
Superficial, okay. Not that noticeable from the front, maybe. But when the nurse showed Grady how to hold the baby against his shoulder to burp her, and Raney and Dalton saw for the first time how the two rounded lumps sort of squared off the back of her head, it was still shocking. And a little funny-looking.
Dalton dipped his head down and whispered in Raney’s ear, “Sorta gives new meaning to the word blockhead, doesn’t it?”
“Hush,” she whispered, fighting a smile now that she knew the baby was okay.
“Look on the bright side. She probably won’t roll off the changing table.”
Raney choked back a laugh and elbowed him in the ribs. “Stop.”
After answering a raft of questions and assuring the new parents that everything was fine, the two nurses made their escape. Before Dalton could get them both into trouble, Raney went to Joss’s side. “How are you feeling, Little Mama?”
“Sore. Happy.” She yawned. “Grateful.”
Raney patted her sister’s shoulder. “You’re tired. We should go. If we leave now, we can make it back to the ranch by ten. Unless you want us to stay?”
“No,” Joss said around another yawn. “They want me to sleep so I can recover faster. Almost sounds like they’re trying to get rid of us.” She smiled over at Grady, who was beaming down at his precious square-headed daughter. “But before you go, we want to ask you to do something.”
“Sure. What do you need?”
“Plan our wedding.”
“Are you serious? Dalton, did you hear that? My baby sister’s getting married!”
Dalton grinned and thumped the new father’s shoulder. “Well done, Grady.”
“Nothing elaborate,” Joss said. “Just something simple, like Len’s.”
Len had had two hundred guests at a lawn wedding. It had been a logistical nightmare. “Have you set a date?” Raney asked.
“Not yet. But probably December.”
An outdoor wedding in December? That would never happen. But rather than get into it now, Raney leaned over and gave her sister a hug. “I’m so happy for the two of you. Grady’s a great guy. We really like him and are delighted to have him in the family.” A thought arose. “Where are you two planning to live?”
Not at the ranch . . . please.
“At the ranch,” Grady said. “Until I find us a place in Austin.”
Raney fought to keep her dismay from showing.
Apparently not well enough to fool Dalton. His arm came around her shoulders in support. Or maybe in a one-armed warning. Trying to sound cheery, she said, “Not L.A. or New York? Maybe Nashville? I thought those were the hot spots of the music industry.” Not that she wanted to get rid of her sister. Not really. But the chaos that always surrounded Joss could be exhausting. And with a baby . . .
“Austin has a big music scene. And one of the buyers for my songs lives there.”
Raney didn’t have to fake her delight at that news. “You sold some of your songs? That’s wonderful!”
“I know.” Joss beamed at her fiancé. “Grady just told me. He thinks I can make good money writing songs, and we won’t have to tour unless
