“Handle what?”
“Church.” Lloyd grinned.
Jake gave him a shove. “Get in there with Katie. She doing okay?”
Lloyd nodded. “Her belly is already getting bigger. And don’t you go teasing her about it. She embarrasses so easy.”
“And I’m sure you have your own ways of embarrassing her. Maybe I’ll ask her about that. I’d like to see if her face gets as red as that hair.”
“Don’t you dare do that to her, you mean sonofabitch.”
“I promise to try to hold my tongue.”
Lloyd pointed a finger at him, then walked back to Katie and gave her a quick kiss before walking into church with her.
Randy took Jake’s arm. “The time has come,” she told him teasingly.
“You make it sound like a hanging,” Jake quipped.
“To you it probably does feel like a hanging. Now take those guns off and come inside, Jake.”
Jake went up the steps, where Jeff stood leaning against the railing—grinning. “Want me to hold those guns for you?”
Jake looked at Randy. “Go on inside. I promise on my honor that I’m coming.”
Randy put her hands on her hips. “Your honor?”
“Hell, I can be honorable sometimes.”
Randy closed her eyes and shook her head. “Don’t you dare disappoint Evie. She’s here because of you, Jake.”
Jake looked her over lovingly. “I’d rather shoot myself than break a promise to Evie. I’ll come inside in a few minutes.”
Randy glanced at Jeff. “Make sure he does.”
“Sure. Jake does anything I tell him to do,” he joked.
Before Randy turned to go inside, she and Jake shared one more look, one Jeff thought burst with absolute, sublime love. She finally went inside, and Jake turned to Jeff.
“That woman has been trying to change me for twenty-six years. You’d think she’d give up by now.”
Jeff grinned. “You both look very handsome and very happy. I take it Randy is completely well now.”
Jake grinned as he lit a cigarette. “Jeff, you don’t know the half.”
“I have a feeling I do.”
Jake drew on the cigarette. “Yeah, well, she’s one hell of a woman.” He began untying the holsters from around his thighs, then unbuckled his gun belt, handing out to Jeff. “Watch these for me.”
Jeff took the gun belt, shaking his head. “You’re really going to do it?”
Jake took another drag on the cigarette. “Got no choice. Between Randy and Evie, I’m hopelessly hog-tied.” He frowned. “By the way, you can hang those guns over the railing if you want. I doubt anyone is crazy enough to try to steal my guns. Come on into church with us.”
Jeff grinned. “Jake, I’m Jewish, remember?”
“Well, Jeff, I highly doubt anyone is going to attack you in there and force you to convert.”
Jeff shook his head, laughing. “Only you would put it that way. Just go on in. I’ll keep an eye on these guns. For all you know, Little Jake will come running out looking for them.”
Jake shook his head. “That kid is fully back to his old daring, fearless self.” He looked past Jeff then to see Dixie standing under a nearby tree. “Well, I’ll be damned.” He hurried down the steps, and Dixie stepped closer.
“You come see me soon as you can, Jake, and tell me all about everything.”
Jake tipped his hat to her. “I’ll do that, pretty lady.”
“I thought I’d come and watch you walk into that church, you mean-spirited, black-hearted sinner. This is going to be right entertaining.”
Jake grinned, leaning down to kiss her lightly on the forehead. “Thanks for all of it, Dixie.” He told her about the reprieve.
Her eyes teared. “You just come visit a few times before you move away. I’ll miss you like hell, Jake.”
He nodded. “I’ll miss you too, Dixie. And we can’t go till next spring, so I’ll be by a few times yet.”
She stepped back. “You’d better get your worthless hide into that church.”
Jake gave her a smile. “You can come too.”
Dixie laughed. “Please! If we both walked in there, the entire congregation would faint dead away. Just seeing you will be enough of a shock.” She gave him a shove. “Go on with you now.”
Jake reached out and squeezed her hand before turning away and heading back up the church steps. “There stands one fine woman, Jeff.”
“Yes, sir, I agree with you.”
“You coming to see us in Colorado?”
“I’ll have to. I won’t have this book done until next spring, and you need to see it first.”