Chapter 6

Jarrod had Eugene in the front seat beside him, Mrs. Brooks and almost all of the baggage behind them in the surrey he drove behind Nick, Eugene's wife Emily and their four children – the baby Betty, three-year-old David, five-year-old Jonathan and seven-year-old Gene Jr. The children were pretty quiet on the trip home, but as Gene put it, "That's because they're tired. Wait till they get to the house, get something to eat and start waking up."

Audra and Carl and their son – five-year-old Carl Jr. – were not at the ranch when Jarrod and Nick got home with Eugene and his family. Heath and Sarah and their children – three-year-old Thomas, five-year-old Emmie and six-year old Heath Jr. – were off at their own home now too, leaving the only kids in the house as Nick and Nancy's six-year-old Ben, seven-year-old Nick Jr. and 13-year-old Victoria. Jarrod thought about that and said, "You know, with your four and Nick's three, the house is gonna explode right away, and when Heath comes over with his four and Audra with her boy – "

"I know," Eugene said, "I counted on the way here on the train. As soon as we get in tonight, there will be seven running around, and then with Heath and Audra we add four more. That's almost a dozen ragamuffins running around – except the baby isn't running yet, of course. But that house is gonna seem too small."

Jarrod chuckled. "Mother's revenge. How I wish she'd been here to see it."

"Yeah," Eugene said. "I was hoping we'd get here even before she passed. I've been neglectful, Jarrod. I'm sorry."

"You had your own family to raise," Jarrod said. "Remember, Mother came west with father and left family behind to raise her own here. She understood what you were doing and why you did it. She had no regrets, Gene. She was proud of you."

Gene smiled a little. "Thanks, Jarrod. She was proud of you too, you know. She wrote me a lot after you settled in San Francisco. She missed you, but she was proud of the man you made yourself into."

Jarrod thought back on his last conversations with his Mother, but did not talk about it. "She was proud of all of us," he just said.

"I know you don't know my children," Gene said, "but they're good kids. A bit citified so they'll be a little put off by the ranch."

"Nick's kids will cure them of that," Jarrod said.

"How are you with kids? I mean – you don't have any of your own to practice on."

Jarrod almost felt a twinge of feeling left out, but when Eugene talked about kids to "practice on," he couldn't help but laugh. "I've had all the others now and then."

"How long before you have to go back to San Francisco?"

"Three or four days," Jarrod said. "I'll wire my secretary tomorrow and see how things are going without me."

"Well, that'll give you time to get used to the large amount of pandemonium that's gonna go on," Gene said. "Mrs. Brooks is very good with the kids. I promise you, by tomorrow afternoon my gang will be used to Nick's gang and Heath's and Audra's if they show up too. It might get a little crazy once the whole bunch gathers together, though, so you better be ready."

"I can always retreat to the library," Jarrod said.

"Wanna bet?" Gene said.

XXXXX

All the hugs and hellos and introductions went around as soon as Eugene and Emily came in the front door with their brood. Eugene's kids were shy at first, but Nick's kids cured them of that in a hurry. Nick's children were anxious to show their new cousins around and it wasn't but ten minutes before Nick's boys Ben and Nick Jr. had all the other kids in hand, except for the baby that Emily kept hold of and Nick's oldest Victoria who stayed with the adults. The rest of the kids disappeared up the stairs with Mrs. Brooks following along.

"Are we gonna put all the kids all in one room tonight?" Gene asked.

"Good heavens, no," Nancy said. "We set one of the guest rooms up for your kids and another for you and Emily and the baby, and the third for your nanny. My kids are showing yours where everything is."

Two of the ranch hands came in, carrying the luggage belonging to the people they had named the Baltimore Barkleys. "I better help them out," Nick said.

"I'll help too," Gene said, and he and Nick started helping to take things upstairs.

"Vicki," Nancy said to her daughter, "would you go into the kitchen and let Silas know how many of us there are for dinner tonight?"

"Yes, ma'am," Victoria said and was off. "I'll help him out too," she said as she left, sounding like she was just as glad to get off to someplace quieter.

Jarrod headed for the refreshment table and took charge of providing the ladies each with a glass of wine before returning for a shot of scotch for himself. Nancy and Emily were talking about life as a Barkley wife but let it go when Jarrod returned with his scotch and sat down in his old thinking chair. That was when noise started coming down from upstairs – some kid noise, some Nick noise, some muted and careful sounds that Jarrod and Nancy figured were coming from Mrs. Brooks.

"Oh, my," Emily said. "I hope they're not squabbling already."

"It sounds more like they're ganging up on Nick together," Jarrod said.

Nancy got up. "I better go check on things."

Jarrod had to smile as she headed up the stairs. That left him and Emily there together, total strangers yet in-laws. Emily had some of the shyness that passed onto her children, and at first Jarrod didn't know what to say. He finally ended up saying, "I'm sure the kids will settle down once they get over the newness of having cousins."

"Gene warned me that Nick was on the boisterous side so his children probably would be too," Emily said.

Jarrod chuckled. "Gene got that right. I hope you're ready for your gang to get a little more boisterous."

"They'll be all right," Emily said. "I'm sure it's the newness, like you say, and it will settle down."

"How long do you think you can stay?" Jarrod asked.

"Only three days or so," Emily said. "Delays with the train ate into the time Gene can be away from his office."

"We're mighty proud of him around here," Jarrod said. "Mother could have burst when Gene got his medical license and started seeing his own patients."

"Gene tells me that you were more like a father to him than a brother."

"Well, maybe, after our father died."

"You are almost old enough to be his father. I guess that's why you stepped into the role as smoothly as Gene says you did."

Jarrod chuckled again. "Maybe."

The noise from upstairs got a little bit louder. Emily sighed. "I'd go up there, but I don't think I'd be any help."

"We'll get them all outside after breakfast tomorrow. I think your boys are anxious to ride a horse."

"Do you think they're up to that?"

"Nick will take care of them. He's taught his own to ride, and he'll know the gentlest mount to put them on. Don't worry about that."

The noise upstairs began to fade away, but so did the conversation between Jarrod and Emily. Emily felt a little awkward talking to Jarrod about children, when she knew he'd been widowed and didn't have any. Jarrod sensed her uneasiness but didn't know what to do about it.

Emily finally said, "I understand you live in San Francisco. That must be very exciting."

"It's a fine city," Jarrod said. "I moved there because most of my clients were coming from there."

"You don't miss the ranch?"

"I do, but I'm perfectly at home in the city too. Gene and I are kind of like the bookends of the male Barkleys – the oldest and the youngest of us professional men while Nick and Heath in the middle are the ranchers."

"Gene told me he had plenty of experience herding cattle and even breaking horses."

"He did, and so did I, but I don't think either one of us has broken a horse in 20 years. I'm not even sure how well Gene might be riding these days."

"He intends to find out."

Emily sounded a little nervous at the prospect. Jarrod said, "He was a good rider. I'm sure he hasn't lost the knack, and I don't think Nick will be asking him to break any horses."

The conversation lagged again, but Gene coming down the stairs livened it up again. "Don't worry. They're not fighting. They're just getting to know each other."

Emily reached for him, and he sat down beside her on the settee. "Do you think they'll get any sleep tonight?" she asked.

"Frankly, no," Gene said.

"I'm not sure any of us will," Jarrod added. Then said, "Maybe I'll sleep down in the library."

The noise from upstairs flared up again.

Jarrod said, "Or better yet, maybe I'll go sleep in the bunkhouse."