Gracie Dutton

2

CHAPTER 2 REWRITTEN

Gracie awoke to the sound of light knocking on her bedroom door. She groaned softly as she stretched her limbs. She rolled her head to look out her window and saw the midnight colored sky- the alarm on her nightstand reading six o'clock.
"Gracie?" John's worried tone floated through the wood of her closed bedroom door.
She stood up slowly and walked over to her bedroom door. She cracked it open.
"What is it?" She asked quietly.
"I want to talk about what happened. Can you come down to dinner please?" John gazed into her eyes almost pleading for her to corporate.
"Is she going to be there?" Gracie asked nervously. She was honestly not in the mood to come face to face with Beth right now.
John sighed and rubbed his top lip.
"How about you and I just talk in your room for right now? I can bring you up some dinner."
John wanted to keep the peace and not force Gracie into anything she didn't want.
She glanced at him warrily but then opened her bedroom door, allowing him in, before then closing it behind him. She felt that nervous feeling rolling through her stomach again- she assumed from nerves and because she hadn't eaten. She let out a sigh as she sat down on the edge of her bed, John sitting at her desk chair. He looked at his daughter and felt worry consume him that she was going to leave him just like all the others. The guilt consumed him so powerful he choked back his emotions.
"Gracie, why don't we start from the beginning?" He offered.
She merely nodded as she stared at the man in front of her who wasn't the man she thought.
John began telling her how Rip came to the ranch and the story of him and Beth as teenagers.
"Well, that's how you got here. There was no way they would have been able to raise you. Your mother had a bright future ahead of herself and she couldn't just throw it all away. I came up with the idea to adopt you because there was also no way you were going to be raised by none other than your own people." John paused at that note to look at Gracie and allow her to talk.
Gracie processed everything he told her and felt a whirlwind of emotions: anger, hurt, betrayal, dissapointment.
"I don't understand why I couldn't have known though. Why would you all let me believe this facade?" She looked up at John with those lost blue eyes.
John sighed.
"It was Beth's decision. I can't speak much for her, as it is her side to tell. But, she was the one that didn't want you to find out."
Gracie just sighed and swallowed hard.
"I'm not really hungry, daddy. I have some homework I need to do and shower."
Gracie was a lot like Beth so John knew that was her way of telling him she needed to be alone. He stood up from his chair and pressed a gentle kiss to the top of her head.
"Goodnight, honey. I love you."
With that he made his exit, leaving Gracie alone to continue accepting her new world.

John made his way to the dining room, stopping to pour himself a good amount of whiskey before taking his seat at the head of the table. Beth and Rip stared at him anxiously.
"Where is she?" Beth asked almost panic-like.
John sighed.
"She didn't want to come down. We talked briefly. This is a lot for her to take in."
Rip could feel the nerves radiating off of Beth. He reached over and gave her hand a gentle squeeze.
"Everything will be alright. She'll talk when she's ready."
Beth gulped down the last of her wine before she stood up and made her way onto the porch, Rip quickly following her.
"What are we going to do?" Beth asked into the dark night, knowing it was Rip who followed her out there. She felt the tears pooling as she puffed on her cigarette. "Did we make a mistake?" She quickly spun around to face him, her anxiety skyrocketing at that thought.
Rip quickly stepped towards her, resting his hands on her shoulders, grounding her.
"We didn't make a mistake, we did what we thought was best for our daughter. She will come around, Beth. We'll love her just like we have been."
Beth felt herself calm, something only Rip knew how to do. She always felt everything would be okay when she had Rip at her side. She nodded briefly and snubbed out her cigarette.
"She's going to hate me," Beth whispered and rested her head against his chest.
Rip wrapped his arms protectively around the woman that he loved and thought about his little girl upstairs all alone. He placed a soft kiss to the top of Beth's head.
He silently swore to himself that he would get his family united, no matter what it took.