Amber stood and rushed toward him. Cookie stopped her. “You know better than to leave the table without permission, miss.”
Amber groaned, rolled her eyes, and went back to the table. “May I be ’scused please?”
“Yes, you may. Take your dish to the sink then visit with your Daddy for a while. It’s almost bedtime. Those chickens get hungry early.”
Dwayne swung her up into his arms when she was done and carried her from the room. He got her squealing by growling and chewing at her neck.
“Daddy, stop!” She placed her hands on his cheeks, stared into his eyes, and solemnly said, “I’m too big for that.”
He bounced her in his arms. “Who says?”
“Me. I growed up this summer.”
“Well, that does it. I’m taking you home tomorrow to slow you down. I don’t want you to grow up.”
“You’re silly.” She hugged his neck. “I love you, Daddy. Is Marla going to be my new mama?”
“Whoa. Where did that come from?”
“Is she? Because I want her to be my mama. She telled me Skipper can sleep in my bunk tonight.”
Ah, that was it. She was in love with the mouse. “What’s the hurry? Day after tomorrow the whole gang of us is driving over to Buffalo to watch Charlene and Donovan get hitched. One wedding at a time, my too-big girl.”
She gave an excited bounce. “We’re going on a rill wagon train ride after and have a rill cowboy cookout. I can’t wait. Is Marla going to sleep in your bed tonight?”
He stumbled on the doorjamb and caught himself before he dumped both of them on their butts. What should he say? The truth might be best. “Uh, yeah, we’re sharing my old bedroom. Why?”
“Is she cuddly? I like sitting on her lap, Marla’s rill nice and soft, and she smells good. That’s why I want her for my mama. She’s rill bossy, but if she’s cuddly you probly want to keep her.”
“Keep who?” Marla asked as she strolled in.
“You!” Amber struggled. “Put me down, Daddy.” She ran and embraced Marla. “I want him to keep you.”
Marla’s gaze caught his. He detected a flash of panic in her eyes and a rosy glow burned her cheeks. “Um.”
He swatted Amber on the butt. “Bedtime. Go check in with Cookie and Grammakat then off you go. That old rooster will be crowing before you know it.”
“Night, Marla. Night, Daddy. Come, Skipper.” She ran off, Skip bouncing along beside her, and left them standing staring at each other.
“She wants you to keep me?” Her lips made a wry little twist. He couldn’t look at her mouth without getting that deep-down buzz.
“Get a sweater. Let’s go out on the porch.” When she turned to leave, he grabbed her hand. “Wait.” He put his arms around her and planted a kiss on her lips. “For the record—I’m keeping you.”
Marla found Dwayne standing in the empty living room in front of the wide, riverbed rock fireplace. He was peering at photos lining the roughhewn pine mantel. She put her arms around his waist and propped her chin on his shoulder. “Who are all these handsome men in uniform?”
He pulled her to his side. “This is my mom’s grandfather, Hector Burwell, in his World War I Marine uniform.”
She rested her head against his shoulder. “So handsome. He reminds me of a 1930’s movie star. What was he, in his twenties?”
“He enlisted at nineteen and was assigned to the 6th Marine Regiment. He later named this ranch Belleau Wood after the battle that won him the Navy Cross.
“Mom changed it to Big D after she married Dad and had three sons whose names all started with D. If you look at the brand for the ranch, it’s a big D with a small BW inside.”
He took a step to his left. “This is Grandpa Douglas Burwell in his World War II Marine uniform. He won the Silver Star at the battle of Iwo Jima. Then he went to Korea and fought at Chosin. Gramps was a Bird Colonel when he retired.”
Her heart warmed at the pride in his voice. She gave him the once-over. “You look like him.”
He grinned. “Yeah, I do.” He took another step to his left. “You know the rest, Dylan, Afghanistan, me, Iraq, and Donovan, Afghanistan and Iraq. As you can see from the photo, Donovan has a chest full of medals. Dylan and I got a few minor ones and Purple Hearts.”
“Dylan was wounded?”
Dwayne chuckled and leaned close to her ear. “Don’t tell him I said so, but he got shot in the ass diving for cover during a firefight.”
She gave him a big grin. “It’s our secret. What about Uncle Johnny? Was he in the military?”
“No. Like your dad, the timing was off for that age group. This rogue’s gallery represents the Burwell side of the family.”
“I see where you and your brothers get your physical characteristics. It always puzzled me that you didn’t much resemble John.”
He turned her in his arms. “Come take a walk with me, there’s something I want to tell you.”
Heart pounding, she stood on tiptoe and kissed him. “I can’t wait to hear it.”
Chapter Thirty-One
They leaned against the porch railing. Clouds overhead obscured the sky. No stars were visible, but the moon glowed bravely, shining light through the cloud cover, and gave the night an ethereal glow. A cool breeze ruffled Marla’s hair.
She leaned into Dwayne’s side, his arm draped around her shoulders. “It’s so quiet here. It’s almost too quiet to sleep. I never thought of Spring Grove as a big city but compared to here, it is.”
What was it he wanted to tell her? He’d told her many times over the past two months that he loved her, so it couldn’t be that. Not that she’d mind hearing it again. Was he about to propose marriage? No. It was far too soon for that, and it would need to be something
