Saving Grace (#1 in the Red Valley Series)

Chapter 15

Grace awoke to the smell of bacon, biscuits and fresh coffee. She cracked her eyes open as the bed dipped and Cole leaned over her, pressed his lips against her ear and spoke softly.

"Good morning beautiful. I love you." Cole smiled as a shiver ran down her body. "I brought you breakfast."

"I could get used to this, you know." Grace smiled as she sat up and Cole laid a tray of bacon, eggs, biscuits, and coffee on her lap.

He sat down beside her on the bed, grabbed a biscuit and took a bite; then leaned back against the headboard and sipped his coffee. The two of them enjoyed the companionable silence both lost in their thoughts while eating their breakfast. Grace was the first to speak.

"Cole, when can we go back home? I miss the ranch and the house as well as Sam. I know you are trying to protect us but no one has seen anything out of the ordinary for at least two weeks. Please."

He knew that she had been patient and that she wanted to go home, but he just couldn't shake the feeling that they needed to stay in town just a little longer. "Okay, we'll go home tomorrow." Cole said with a sigh.

Grace jumped and squealed as she moved the tray to the foot of the bed, then turned around and wrapped her arms around Cole's neck. "Really? You mean it?"

Cole leaned over and set his coffee cup on the bedside table then wrapped both of his arms around her waist and lifted her onto his lap. "Yes, I mean it. I guess it will be okay for us to go back home. But I'm leaving at least one of the hands with you and Blake and I don't want to hear any arguments. Okay?" He could feel Grace nod her head.

"Thank you."

"Oh, before I forget, Henry said he thought he had something of yours. He said he found it upstairs. I told him you would go over after breakfast."

"I can't think of anything that I left over there." Grace said thoughtfully. "And I really don't want to take Blake out."

"After you feed Blake, how long until you have to feed him again?"

Grace drew her brows together. "Well, I think usually about three to four hours during the day and about six hours at night. Why?"

"How about after you feed him you go over to the diner and see if what Henry found is yours, then go over to Anne's and visit with her for a couple of hours? It will give you a little time to yourself." Cole reached up and cupped her face. "Besides, it will also give me time to spend with Blake."

Grace leaned forward and kissed Cole. The next thing she knew she was laying on her back and her husband was laying over her with his weight supported on his elbows. His lips left hers and trailed down her neck. A moan escaped her lips as her arms wound around Cole's neck running her fingers through his silky black hair.

Blake began to fuss in his cradle wanting to eat his breakfast, too. Both of them lay there for a moment then Cole smiled. "I'll get him, you get comfortable and I will bring him to you."

An hour later Blake had been fed and changed and Grace was walking down the sidewalk to the diner. This was the first time she had really been out since she'd had Blake. Cole either had their meals delivered or he went and picked them up and brought them back to their room. They had eaten at Anne and Andy's a couple of times.

The air was a little cool for this time of year and Grace shivered slightly as she wrapped her shawl a little tighter around her shoulders. She'd decided to go see Henry first even though she really didn't want to see him at all. When she left there, she would go to Anne's house and spend about an hour or so with her friend.