Maya’s Triple Dare(Divine Creek Ranch 6)(28)
“Everything happens for a reason. I think they enjoy coddling you,” Grace said, her eyes twinkling. Maya had a feeling Grace knew all about being coddled.
“You think?” Maya chuckled. In the hour Grace had been at the house, Richard and Boone had called to check on her, and Kendall had returned at midmorning to see how she was faring. “Can I ask you one more question?”
“Sure.”
“PDA?”
Grace grimaced. “That’s a tough one. Public displays of affection may have been one of the biggest hurdles we’ve faced. I had to decide if I would acknowledge only Jack publicly as my husband or all three,” she said, holding her hands out, balanced like a scale.
“What did you do?”
“I adjusted my expectations. I can’t look at Ethan or Adam without love in my eyes. It feels like a betrayal when I have to hide it. I acknowledge Jack as my husband and try to behave in a way that doesn’t draw unfriendly attention, and we let people draw their own conclusions.”
“That must be hard for you to maintain.”
“It is, at times. Unless I’m at one of the shops, I’m usually with them. They worry about the unkind things people say to me. I try to take their comments the same way I do my book reviews. It’s somebody else’s opinion. I appreciate kindness, and I try to not sweat the rest. I want to please Jack, Ethan, and Adam before anyone else.”
“I can’t wait to meet Jack and Ethan. Adam obviously adores you,” Maya said, remembering the tenderness with which Adam had held her the day before on their front porch.
Grace smiled and looked into her glass. “I adore him, too.” Maya thought Grace did indeed glow with happiness.
She had to know. “Do you ever argue? Fight? Get pissy with them?”
Grace chuckled and said, “Sure. But they overcome a lot of that because I don’t feel overlooked or unappreciated. When someone is consistently that sweet it’s awful hard to bite his head off, and I’m not wired that way. Have you thought how you’re going to handle issues like public displays of affection?”
Maya bit her lip and said, “I don’t plan to hide. I hid my need for Kendall from Morgan, unsuccessfully I might add, for years. I did without what I needed because of public opinion. I don’t plan to treat them differently than I would in private. They’re equal in my heart.”
“They’re going to be ferociously protective of you. You should hear how Kendall talks about you. You’re his angel.”
Maya felt her cheeks tingle with warmth at Grace’s words. Deciding to bounce the tiny little worry rattling around in her head off of Grace, Maya said, “He told me he didn’t want to be my ‘go-to’ guy anymore. We’ve always been close, and I could talk to him about anything. Really anything, Grace. We’ve talked about some crazy stuff over the years, and I always felt like he was someone I could trust. If we get together, I risk losing that.”
Grace looked down at her overlapped hands on the tabletop. After a moment she said, “I think you risk more by wanting to keep that part of your relationship intact. Are you seeing it from his perspective? He’s loved you a long time and not had access to you except as your confidante. You’d still have a confidante. Someone who knows you better than anyone. This sounds like a trust issue to me.”
“How so?”
“Don’t you trust him to be there for you?”
“Sure. But before I could rely on his unbiased opinion.”
“Do you really think he was unbiased?” Grace asked doubtfully. “Before you answer, ask yourself this. If he’s been in love with you all this time, how do you think he felt every time you called on him for advice?”
“Damn. When it’s put that way, it sounds almost cruel.”
“He probably wouldn’t call you cruel, Maya, but it had to sting. Now, here is this fresh opportunity. Speaking of opportunities, Emma Guthrie told me this morning that she will have an opening available in her practice in September when her RN retires.”
Damn. Maya had known Grace for a day, and she was already putting feelers out for potential job openings. Maya perked up at the news. “That is good to know.”
“Which means you might even be here for the birth of this little girl.” Maya thought of just how easily she could slip into a life there in Divine, becoming a part of the community and her men’s family.
* * * *
Despite her protests, Maya was unsuccessful in talking Kendall into bringing her out to the ranch that afternoon when he came by for a late lunch.
“The ER doctor said you’d need the rest today. No, don’t give me ‘the lip,’” Kendall said, obviously having a hard time suppressing his amusement at her pouty lip.