Almost Home by Mariah Stewart

thought of that all by yourself?”
    “Yeah.” He nodded, obviously pleased with himself.
    “What if I made a special Dallas flavor and she wanted me to make it again? Then what?”
    “Then I guess you’d have to do it, but you could only make it for her.” He shook his head. “I can’t think of anything else, Stef. She’s the woman who has everything. She can buy anything she wants.” He lowered his voice to a confessional tone. “I want to propose to her, but I can’t buy a ring as big as what she could buy herself, even if I used my savings plus the money Horace left me.”
    “Perhaps we should have beeen discussing why men are so stupid instead of ice cream.”
    “What’s that supposed to mean?”
    “Of course Dallas can afford to buy herself the biggest ring on the planet. She’s a huge movie star and makes millions of dollars every time she makes a film. You’re a veterinarian, you don’t make Hollywood bucks. I’m pretty sure she’s figured that out, and I don’t think she cares a fig about how big a diamond you could buy her. She has plenty of her own diamonds. Maybe what she wants from you is something that money can’t buy.”
    “Like what?”
    “Besides your undying love—though why she would want
that
is a discussion for another day—maybe something that has a deeper meaning. Something truly special. Something beyond a price tag. Something that no one else has.”
    “Like what?” He frowned.
    “Like …” She paused to think for a minute, then snapped her fingers when it came to her. “Nana’s wedding ring.”
    Grant stared blankly. She waved her hand in front of his face.
    “You still in there?” she asked.
    “You think she’d want that? Nana’s ring?”
    “I think it would mean the world to her. Dallas cares about stuff like that. If she didn’t, she’d be commuting from Hollywood to St. Dennis once a month instead of the other way around. She values family connections, Grant. Hers, yours …” Steffie nodded. “If you’re going to ask her to marry you, I think Nana’s ring is definitely the way to go. Besides, it’s agorgeous ring. Platinum is very in these days, and the three stones in the band are quite lovely. And it was Nana’s, so it means something.”
    “Hmm. Nana’s ring … I’ll think about it. Maybe I’ll give Mom a call and see what she thinks. Thanks for the suggestion.”
    “I live to serve.”
    “So what do you think about the ice-cream flavor? Will you do it?”
    “I’ll play around and see what I can come up with. I know what flavors she’s partial to,” Stef said thoughtfully, “because she always orders ice cream in the same family. Peach. Lemon. Fruity but not too sweet.”
    “Thanks. I know you’ll come up with just the right thing. You’re a gem.” Grant checked the time on the wall clock, then stood to give her a hug. “I gotta get over to the clinic.”
    “Here.” She pointed to the back door. “Go out this way. It’s closer to the parking lot.”
    She unlocked the door, but then blocked it with her body so he couldn’t leave. “But first—what’s the story with Wade and the little guy who calls him Daddy?”
    “I thought maybe you’d forgotten.”
    “Not on your life.” She closed the door, relocked it, and made a show of tucking the key into the palm of her hand before making a tightly clenched fist. “Spill.”
    “I can’t.”
    “What do you mean, you can’t?” She frowned.
    “I promised I wouldn’t tell anyone.”
    “I’m not anyone,” she reminded him sweetly. “I’m your beloved sister.”
    He shook his head. “Sorry. I really mean that. I
am
sorry. But I gave my word.”
    “Who’d you give your word to?”
    “Dallas,” he told her.
    Steffie bit the inside of her lip. “It’s because you’re sleeping with her, isn’t it.” It wasn’t a question.
    Grant sighed. “The guy’s entitled to his privacy. If he wants to discuss his private affairs with you—or anyone else—he’ll do