Cameron's Quest (4 page)

“Oh!”

“Okay.”

They both answered at once and skipped ahead to
the open office door. Luke glanced up as the three of them entered. LEGO blocks
were scattered across the floor, so
Cam
gingerly picked his way through. “That’s a mighty fine barn you have there.
Where are those horses you told me about?”

“Hi, Uncle Cam. The horses are here…all seven of
them. What do you think of my building skills, boys?” Luke drew the boys’
attention to the horses lined up on the edge of his desk.

“Wow! That one looks like Candy,” said Casey as
he ventured closer.

“And here’s Dandy.” Cammy stood in front of the
desk without moving as if scared to pick the horse up.

“Amazing what you can build with that stuff
these days.”
Cam
turned his attention toward
his nephew. “How’s it going, Luke? Ranch accounts looking okay?”

Luke grimaced. “Yeah, the accounts are
up-to-date, but I’ll be happy to hand the reins back over to you anytime you’re
ready. Paperwork is
not
my thing.”

Cam
chuckled at his expression. “That’s why I’m
here. Anything need doing?”

“Just this week’s payroll, but next week is
month end.” Luke stood, vacating the chair, a grin lighting up his face. “Have
at ’er, Unc! It’s all yours.”

Cam
circled around behind the desk and sat.

“We haven’t seen much of you since you’ve been
back. How have you been?” Luke asked.

“I’m fine,” he answered, swiveling the chair to
face Luke. “Just had some personal stuff to work out. By the way, thanks for
taking such good care of Siren while I was gone. He’s in excellent shape.”

Luke nodded. “Yes, he is, but you have
Cal
to thank for that.
He sure does love the horses. So what’s been bothering you? Anything I can help
with?”

Cam
spared a moment to watch his great-nephews
absorbed in their building. “How did you feel when you found out you were a
daddy?”

Luke grinned, a wide, full-faced grin. “I was
amazed, especially with them being twins. I was also hurt and angry,” he added
in a lower tone of voice. “I missed five years of their lives that I can never
get back.”

“Be thankful it was only five years. You’ll find
out soon enough what you missed when the new baby arrives.”

“Uncle Cam? What’s up? Why so solemn?” Luke’s
voice was laced with suspicion, his features showing concern.

“Not solemn, just thoughtful. I found out this
past summer that I’m a father of triplets—three identical girls now
twenty-three years old.”

“Oh, wow! Congratulations!” Luke reached over
the desk to shake his hand. “No wonder you stayed away so long. Where are they?
Are they coming here?”

Cam
shrugged his shoulders. “They live in
Ireland
with
their mother. I invited them, wired tickets through to the airline there, but I
haven’t heard back yet.”

“Bummer. What’s their mother like?”

“Just as beautiful as I remembered her, maybe
even more so, but that Irish temperament of hers is just plain stubbornness in
my opinion.”

Luke seemed to consider his words. “She never
married?”

“Nope.”
Cam
grinned. “All four women are single. I’m hoping they come and visit long enough
to fall in love with the place. Maybe they’ll stay. At least, that’s what I’d
like. But their lives are rooted in
Ireland
.
Canada
and life on the ranch are a
lot different than what they’re used to. Lacey, their mother, owns a bistro,
and all three girls work there.”

“Ranch life would be a big challenge for them.
It was quite an adjustment for Zakia, too.” Luke moved to take a seat in one of
the high-backed armchairs facing the desk. “It didn’t work out so well the
first time, but now it’s as if she was born to it.”

“If they decide to come, I’ll show them around
and teach them to ride if they want. Other than that, I don’t have a clue how
to entertain them or convince them to stay.”

“Maybe you should talk it over with Zakia. She
might have some ideas. What did Lacey name the girls?”

Cam
straightened in his chair, proud to have Luke’s
interest. “Carlyn, Abigail, and Maureen.”

Luke laughed out loud as he made the connection,
drawing the attention of the boys. They started to get up, but Luke motioned
them to keep playing. “C. A. M. Sounds like their mother has a great sense of
humor.”

He scratched his head, thinking about Luke’s
statement. “She did years ago, but it’s not so evident now.”

“Gave you a hard time, did she?” Luke smiled a
devilish grin.

“You could say that. She thinks I should’ve
tried harder to find them sooner. I did go to
Ireland
before coming home, but
there were so many dam…er, darned many Kerrigans listed in the directory that I
didn’t know where to start.”

“Yeah, I can understand that. You must’ve been
quite young at the time.”

“Yep, twenty-five, just two years older than my
daughters are now.”

Cam
heard a vehicle pull up outside.

Luke stood. “That’s probably Zakia. Want me to
send her in?”

“Not much point talking about what to do until I
know for sure they’re coming.”
Cam
felt a
smile coming on. “We
can
tell her my
news, though.”

“Your call,” Luke said as he left the room. When
he came back, Zakia, and his sister, Leah, were with him. Both ladies were
speechless at his news, an extremely uncommon occurrence that didn’t last long
as they lavished him with hugs and congratulations.

Cam
felt like a proud papa as he showed them the
pictures he’d taken…a papa who could barely wait to see his daughters again.
Would they come? And would Lacey accompany them or continue to keep her
distance?

****

Sounds of excited chatter woke Lacey the
following morning. She smiled as she rose, knowing her decision to visit
Cam
’s ranch was the right one. She showered and dressed
for work before venturing into the kitchen. “Good morning, ladies.” Lacey
greeted them as she’d done every morning for many years. “What has you up so
early?”

Rena turned to her. “As if you didn’t know, Mama.
I could hardly sleep, I was so excited about our trip.”

“I never slept a wink,” said Abby. “
Canada
…it’s so
far away. This feels like a dream.” She poured her mother a cup of coffee and
passed it to her.

Lynne yawned and stretched. “If it is, I don’t
want to wake up. Will you be talking to Uncle Dan again today, Mama?”

“Yes, I’ll give him a call after the breakfast
rush is over.” Lacey glanced at the watch on her wrist. “Speaking of which, are
we eating here or at the bistro this morning?”

“At the restaurant. You can cook for us while we
get everything started for customers.” Rena grinned at her.

“Sounds like a plan. We’d better get going then.”
Lacey downed her coffee, needing the jolt of caffeine to jumpstart her day. She
rinsed her mug and placed it in the dishwasher, the girls following suit. Lacey
grabbed her purse, passing Abby the keys. “It’s your turn to drive.”

“Okay.”

They piled into Lacey’s little Honda Civic and
headed for Bistro For 4.

Lacey loved her little restaurant. From the time
she’d opened the doors to the first customer, it had been a hit. And she had
her family to thank for it.

Once the girls started school, she’d had too
much time on her hands. She was also tired of living at her parents’ place and
began searching the classifieds for job opportunities. With no formal training
beyond high school, her choices had been limited.

Daniel had been her savior.

He’d
stopped in on his lunch break one day, and she was the only one home, perusing
the want ads as usual. She fixed him an omelette, something quick and easy.

“Sis,
why do you want to work for someone else when you can cook like this?”

“Cooking
and cleaning is all I know, and it seems no one is hiring.” She’d grimaced her
displeasure with her current state of affairs.

“Have
you thought about going into business for yourself?”

She’d
snorted a laugh. “Not hardly. I wouldn’t know the first thing about it.”

“I do.”
He’d looked at her shrewdly, appearing deep in thought. “Let me think on it for
a few days. Okay?”

“Are
you serious?”

“Very.”

“All right,
Dan. Go ahead, so long as you know what you’re getting into.”

Daniel
had called her the following night. “I’ve taken tomorrow off. Be ready at nine.
I’ll be by to pick you up.”

“Where
are we going?’

“To get
a glimpse into your future.” He’d laughed and rung off, not telling her anything
else. Anticipation and a healthy dose of excitement had her ready and waiting
at the appointed time. He’d made appointments for them to view properties.

“Daniel,
I can’t afford to buy a house,” she’d protested.

“Ahh, but
these aren’t just houses. They are considered prime retail investment
properties.”

“That
sounds even worse. Why are you taking me to look at expensive properties that I
couldn’t possibly buy?” she’d asked, confused.

He’d
tossed a smug look her way and the search began. “You’ll see.”

Stop
number three had been the ticket. She fell in love with its gabled roof and
decorative eaves on sight. The interior was just as lovely. It was an up-down
duplex on the main street. Dan talked her ear off all the while they were
there. The ground floor had a huge kitchen and access to a finished basement.
He’d spoken of how easily it could be converted to a restaurant.

The
upper duplex was a bonus. It had three bedrooms, one of which was an oversized
master bedroom perfect for the girls. The second bedroom was slightly smaller
and would suit Lacey, leaving the third bedroom to act as a home office. The
kitchen and bathroom were also huge, as demands a growing family. Lacey felt
her hopes and dreams of independence coming to fruition. But she was scared.

“Daniel,
I love it, but how can I possibly afford this?”

“Well,
I took the liberty of speaking with Dad. We’re willing to invest in the
venture, provide the down payment, start-up costs, and such. You can leave it
setup that way or buy us out later. The choice is up to you. What do you say?”

“What
if I can’t do it? What if my restaurant is a dismal failure?”

Daniel
had taken her hands in his and waited until she’d looked up at him. “Lacey, you
already know how to cook. I can teach you the rest. You’re a smart girl. You
can do this. I believe in you and so do Mom and Dad.”

“Then I
say, yes! You are the best!” She had given him a big bear hug, tears of joy
flooding her eyes. “When do we start?”

“Earth to Mom! We’re here.”

The slamming of the car’s rear doors, combined
with Abby’s words, brought Lacey back to the here and now. Immersed in her
thoughts and oblivious to her surroundings, she hadn’t realized the car had
stopped. “I’m coming.”

She pushed thoughts of the past behind to shore
up her energy for another day at the bistro. Thanks to her family, life had
been good for her and her girls.

Lacey followed her daughters through the back
entrance, satisfied at the automatic click of the locking mechanism behind her.

“Lynne, Rena, we’re catering a breakfast meeting
in the gold room upstairs this morning. You two go up and get things started.
Abby, you’re with me. Josie’s coming in at six thirty, so we should be fine. I’ll
start the grill and the coffee while you set up the dining room.”

All three nodded their agreement and headed off
to start the day. She watched Lynne and Rena climb the stairs to the second
level. The open stairway had been Dan’s idea once they’d purchased and moved to
a house in the country. It allowed customers to see how they’d grown and
expanded. A discreet sign at the foot of the stairs announced that they now
catered business meetings in private dining areas. Four of them, to be exact,
and it hadn’t cost much to remodel the living room and three bedrooms to suit.

Lacey turned and entered her domain through one
of two swinging doors. Gleaming stainless steel winked at her from every
direction. She turned on the gas-fired grill to heat, set coffee pots to brew,
and plugged in the kettle for tea. Most of their morning clientele were coffee
drinkers, but a few preferred tea. Next she mixed a batch of bread and put it
to rise in the warming oven then started on the tea biscuits—some plain, some
with ham and cheese. When the pan of biscuits went into the oven, she turned to
fix breakfast for her family only to see the girls filing in already.