Free Warrior's Embrace by Peggy Webb Page A

Bolton Gray Wolf....” Candace groaned. “But that’s
all there is to it. I may be a fool, but I’m not that big of a
fool.”
    “Good. He’s only after your money,
Mother.”
    “That’s not true! I won’t have you talk that
way about a man you hardly even know.”
    “Do you know him, Mother?... Other than the
obvious, of course.”
    “Clearly you’re mature enough to have figured
things out, and part of this misunderstanding is my fault for not
being up front with you about my relationship with Bolton. But,
Candace, I don’t owe you the details. As you pointed out you’re an
adult; you’re old enough to know that my libido didn’t die the
minute I got my first wrinkle. And neither will yours.”
    “My libido’s never been tuned up, Mother, so
I really wouldn’t know about things like that.”
    “Well, thank goodness for that.”
    For the first time since the fiasco at the
Bullpen, they smiled at each other. With their mutual affection and
their sense of humor, they could get through anything.
    Candace got off the bed and hugged
Virginia.
    “I’m sorry, Mother. This took me by surprise,
that’s all. Over the last twenty years I got used to having you all
to myself, and I guess I never thought of having to share you. Does
that make me selfish?”
    “No, it makes you human.” Virginia held her
daughter close. “You’ve nothing to worry about, Candace. This week
has been a lovely interlude in my life, and I don’t regret a minute
of it.”
    “Not even that scene at the Bullpen.”
    “Not even that. It proves we’re strong. We’re
capable of showing honest emotion without letting our feelings
damage our relationship.”
    “I don’t want to lose you, Mother. You’re all
I’ve got.”
    All Candace had known of her father over the
years was that he sent expensive gifts at Christmas. Sometimes when
Virginia thought of the way Roger had ignored his own daughter, she
wanted to fly out to California and smash a six hundred-page
bestseller over his head.
    It was bad enough that he left her; he didn’t
have to leave his daughter as well.
    “Don’t worry, Candace. You’re never going to
lose me... no matter what.”
    “Two against the world, Mother?”
    “Two against the world.”
    o0o
    When Virginia had something important on her
mind, she couldn’t sleep. If it happened to be a chapter in a book
that needed fixing, or a character who needed shaping up, she could
just get out of bed, go to her office down the hall, and turn on
the computer. Sometimes the screen was still glowing at two o’clock
in the morning, but that didn’t matter because she was the only
person losing sleep.
    She tossed and turned, wadding the sheets in
a tangle around her legs. Disgusted, she got up and walked to the
window. Was that a pinpoint of light she saw in the guest cottage?
Would it be horribly rude to disturb Bolton at one o’clock in the
morning?
    She climbed back in bed, determined to wait
until morning, but fifteen minutes later she knew she couldn’t.
She’d never been a patient woman, and she despised loose ends.
    She threw on her pink robe, grabbed her
flashlight, and tiptoed down the stairs.
    o0o
    Bolton saw her coming.
    He stood at the window watching, and he knew
by the way she walked that she was geared for battle. One of the
things he loved most about her was her stubborn independence. She
challenged him in a way no woman had, in the same way his mother
challenged his father.
    Bolton smiled. He and his twin sister had
heard the story of their parents’ courtship over and over, and
neither of them ever tired of it. Jo Beth McGill had led Colter
Gray Wolf on a merry chase... and still did from time to time. The
thing that was so wonderful about their love was that it allowed
for disagreements. He and Callie used to climb the tree behind
their house and make bets on the outcome of their parents’ friendly
wars.
    Callie always sided with Jo Beth. “Mom’s sure
to win this one. When she tosses her