Read Sleigh Bells in Valentine Valley for Free Online Page B

boy, who promptly cringed back against his father.
    â€œIt’s the age,” Walt said apologetically.
    â€œI remember.” Kate tried to laugh it off, but today she was feeling a little too vulnerable to banish the brush of uneasy sadness.
    Dave was the last of the brothers to arrive, and he’d brought a date. He worked for the family restaurant as a sommelier, and though he knew his way around wine, he specialized in beer. He was dating a waitress from Carmina’s, and she seemed almost embarrassed to be at the family dinner, although Kate’s parents quickly put her at ease. Dave looked more like a surfer dude than the small-town boy that he was, with his sun-burnished curly hair and tanned good looks.
    The three grandkids descended on Kate’s parents, leaving her to face her brothers. “What?” she asked, faking innocence as they eyed her.
    â€œOkay, what’s going on?” Jim put his hands on his hips. “You weren’t scheduled to be here, and if you were anyone else, we’d think it a lucky coincidence. What’s wrong, Kate?”
    She let out an exaggerated sigh and told them what she’d told her parents—that the law firm had put her on sabbatical because she and the partners had disagreed about a case and the partners wanted her to rethink some things. “It’s okay, really. It’s probably for the best. Cool heads and all that.”
    â€œ You argued with the senior partners?” Dave asked, sipping his beer and looking at her like an alien had taken over her body.
    Jim and Walt sported earnest frowns.
    â€œThe case is complicated, and we could go several different ways.” She gave an exasperated shrug. “You know I can’t talk details.” But she’d revealed more to Tony, she thought uneasily.
    Diana stepped close and gave her a hug. “You know we’re here for you, Kate.”
    Kate blinked at her in surprise, then slowly smiled. “Thanks, Diana. I appreciate that.” She and Diana were friendly, but they’d never had the chance to be close, with Kate’s work/Ethan schedule and Diana being busy with her three kids.
    Walt acted as if his wife had silently prodded him to speak. “Well, of course you can count on us. I’m concerned with how they’re treating you. Is it harassment?”
    Walt, with his business degree, was always practical.
    â€œI appreciate you assuming it’s all their fault.” Kate was certain he used to believe she shouldn’t have gone into the law in the first place. But it wasn’t just about her supposedly turning her back on the family business. Didn’t he ever think there wouldn’t have been room for the both of them at Carmina’s? Hell, she’d probably done him a favor!
    â€œOf course it’s their fault,” Jim said, smiling. “ You couldn’t do anything wrong.”
    He and Dave elbowed each other, and suddenly Kate felt like a girl again, being gently teased by her overwhelming number of brothers. She let her breath out, surprised to feel a little shaky.
    â€œWe don’t need to go into details with everyone, okay?” she said. “It’s . . . too hard to explain, since I can’t discuss it.”
    â€œI’m pretty curious,” Joe said, coming to standing beside all his older brothers, speaking around a mouthful of bread.
    Dave took his teenage brother around the neck with one arm. “Hey, you get to eat and not the rest of us?”
    â€œOops, I was supposed to set out the appetizers,” Kate said, tapping her head with the palm of her hand as she hurried toward the oven. “Oh, I hope the pastry around the Brie didn’t burn.”
    â€œWill we be able to eat her cooking?” Jim asked Dave.
    She ignored their laughter because it felt absolutely normal, which was what she needed.
    Soon her parents’ siblings began to arrive, along with cousins and their kids, and the