Free The Art of Love (The Windswept Saga) by Tommie Conrad

though.  Chandler was always a good kid but when he dated you, he didn’t dare step a toe out of line —the thought of being punished, reprimanded, and not being able to see you damned near made him crazy.  In a good way, I mean.”  He smiled and cleared his throat.  “Sorry about that.  Old memories can be painful to dredge up.  I have so many of the kids together, Chandler and Mark thick as thieves from the beginning, then the two of you almost inseparable.”
    Taylor smiled wistfully.  “Chandler was there for me at one of the most painful times in my life, and I will always be grateful for that.  I love my mother, but I would have been lost without him, without all of you.”
    Bryn rejoined the conversation and smiled affectionately at Taylor.  “He’s not boring you with old ranching stories, is he, sweetheart?  I can’t leave him alone.”
    Chase wrapped an arm around Bryn and kissed the top of her head.  “Together for nearly thirty-five years and still trying to boss me around.”  He laughed roughly.  “Someday you’ll learn.”
    Bryn winked at Taylor.  “Why don’t you go find your son, Chase?  Make sure he’s eaten something this morning.  He never co uld eat when he got nervous.”
    He kissed Bryn’s ear and nodded.  “Yes, ma’am.”  He took his leave and Bryn leaned against the counter, whispering to Taylor conspiratorially. 
    “Funny how quickly I turned that in my favor.”  Taylor laughed softly.  “He’s nervous, isn’t he?”
    She nodded, maybe a little too certain.  “You know how he is, Miss Bryn.  You did raise him.  He puts on that hard shell but you c an read it all over his face.”  She waved a hand around for emphasis.  “We’ve spent much of this week coordinating the grand opening and I can promise you that I have his back.  I’ve come to care a lot about this place in a very short time.”
    Bryn looked away and one eyebrow shot upward.  She was well-aware of Taylor’s feelings because, despite her obvious mate rnal bias, Chandler was pretty easy to love.  She worried to excess about his relentless, frenetic, multitasking ways, but he’d never given her an ounce of actual grief.  Chandler’s sensitivity and depth of kindness was his greatest asset, and likely his greatest flaw.  He simply cared too much about things he couldn’t change.  Her youngest son had a palpable chemistry with Taylor, and Bryn had been secretly both devastated and relieved when their relationship ended.  She assumed they would find their way back to one another, but life had taken its usual circuitous path.  She’d been happy when Taylor married Liam, meeting him once when they’d come to visit Alice.  Bryn figured that was that, and after a certain point they all moved on.  God clearly had a different plan in mind, though, for Taylor was back in Chandler’s sights.
    “Miss Bryn?”  Taylor’s question knocked her out of her head and back into reality.
    “I’m sorry,” she quickly apologized.  “I was just checking to make sure there was enough food.”  Taylor followed her gaze to the table and back, until their eyes met.
    “It looks more than adequate.”  The women shared a smile, and, they’d quickly come to realize, some unspoken truths.
    ***
    Chase gripped his son gently by the shoulders, and looked him up and down.  He smiled.
    “Well, even if you do have my hair, face, and eyes, you’re still a pretty handsome young man.”  He turned his head to one side.  “At least you don’t have my nose.”
    “CJ has your nose,” Chandler observed.  Both men laughed and let the conversation rest for a beat. 
    “I’m proud of you,” Chase told him.  “Even if you’d never sold a single painting, you’ve grown into a fine person, a great brother and a loyal friend.  You’ve been standing on your own two feet for so long now.”
    Chandler noted the wetness in his father’s eyes.  “I wouldn’t have become anything without you