“Have a cookie.” Betsy tapped the plate.
“Thanks.” Morgan crossed to the sink and washed his hands. “Got a call on the stable line about boarding two horses. They’re new to the area, bought a house in town so don’t really have space for a barn. I get the sense they’d want to stop by to ride fairly often so I thought I’d better run it by you.”
“You’d best ask Wayne. I’m fine with it as long as they’re okay sticking to our hours and are going to stay to the posted riding trails. Would they be in your way?”
Morgan shook his head and glanced at Skye. “I never mind having company.”
Skye blinked and looked down at her tea. He couldn’t be talking to her. Why would he want her to come back out to the horses? That was ridiculous.
Betsy chuckled. “Talk to Wayne. Take him a cookie would you, before we eat them all?”
Skye blew across her tea as an excuse to keep her head down. She saw his hand close around another cookie and heard his muffled footfalls.
“Well.” Betsy nudged Skye’s arm with her own. “That was interesting.”
“Having horses to board?”
Betsy laughed. “I’ll leave it alone after saying one thing. I’ve never heard Morgan express an interest in having company before. Ever. Even Calvin, Maria’s son, has only a grudging invitation.”
Skye hunched her shoulders. “That makes no sense.”
“Oh, honey. It makes perfect sense. But then, youth is wasted on the young. Now, what were we talking about? Oh, right. Why Wayne and I would want you here. The simple answer is we love you.”
“You don’t even know me.”
“Doesn’t matter. You’re family and you’re welcome here whenever you want for as long as you want.”
Skye sipped the hot tea and set it down. It wasn’t a taste she was going to be hurrying up to get more of, that was for sure. She shifted in her seat to look at her grandmother. “You’re not anything like Dad said.”
“I imagine not.” Pain clouded Betsy’s eyes. “Your father . . . well we love him too, but I think when he was younger we didn’t love him the way he needed us to. Maybe we tried to hold on too tightly. Or not tightly enough. I don’t know. But I do know that the thing that hurts most is not him turning his back on us, it’s that he walked away from Jesus.”
“Walked away . . . as in Dad ever walked anywhere near Jesus?” That was incomprehensible. When she’d first started attending church with her roommate three years ago, she’d been so careful to keep from mentioning that to anyone in her family lest her dad find out. After Azure came to Jesus, Skye had known that was the right choice. Sure, Skye had been praying for her siblings and her parents to get to know Jesus—but that was as far as she was willing to take evangelism when it came to her family. And, after her experience with church, well, that seemed justified too.
“He did. I hope you’ll stay here long enough for us to have a chance to show you first hand the love of God. It’s probably not like anything your father told you. Azure and Cyan can speak to that as well. And knowing Jesus matters.”
“I know Jesus.” The words slipped out before she gave herself the chance to think about it. But surely her grandmother was a safe place. “But you can’t say anything.”
“Why not?”
“I just don’t want to hear about it from my dad, okay? Azure and Cyan made a different choice, and that’s fine. They’ve always been more capable of handling Dad when he’s critical and sarcastic. But I just can’t. I can’t.” Skye slipped off her stool and hugged her arms around herself. “I’d like to go lie down, if that’s all right?”
“Of course it is. You go have a rest. We’ll see you at lunch?”
Hopefully she’d be able to wake up and be functional. Sleeping her day away was a huge factor in losing her job and ending up here. She didn’t need to irritate her grandparents and make them change their mind about staying. “Sure. Just let me know when it’s ready.”
She probably should have offered to help. But her grandmother was still spry. And she really needed that nap. If she thought through everything her brother had told her about lunch at Hope Ranch, it was a casual affair for the family and ranch employees.
Employees.
Skye cut off a groan as she closed the door to her bedroom. Employees meant Morgan might be joining them for lunch, too. Something about him made her want to spend time with him. But right now, she wasn’t in a place where relationships were a possibility. Which meant she needed to spend as little time with Morgan as possible.
Maybe oversleeping wasn’t such a bad idea after all.
4
“Morning.” Morgan looked over from the coffee pot. Even with bed head, Skye was attractive.
“Hi.” She lurched forward in yoga pants and a hoodie and grabbed at the counter. “Sorry. Mornings, right?”
He frowned. She was pale and her hands were trembling. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah. I’m fine. It just takes me a little while to wake up.” She smiled and straightened, edging around toward the coffee but keeping one hand on the counter. “I try not to overdo with the coffee, but I do like one to get my brain going.”
“Go sit down, I’ll get it for you. How do you take it?”
Her eyes darted to the coffee and then back to the stools at the counter. “Are you sure?”
“I’m sure. Sit. You look like you’re about to pass out.” He reached up and grabbed another mug. Morgan was tempted to scoop her up and carry her back to a seat to ensure she followed directions.
“Okay. Thanks. Um, black is fine.” Skye edged toward the stools that lined the counter and settled on one.
“One cowboy coffee, coming up.” He grinned as he filled the second mug and carried them over to the seating area and tugged out the stool next to hers. “Have any plans for the day?”
Skye shook her head as she picked up the mug and inhaled the scent of the coffee.
“Feel like a road trip?” Now, why had he asked her that? It was true, he was headed into Albuquerque today to meet Cyan and Maria at the airport and bring them back to the ranch, but he was supposed to be looking for ways to avoid extended periods of time in Skye’s presence. Inviting her along on a two and a half hour drive was the exact opposite.
“Maybe? Where are you headed?”
“I told your brother I’d pick him and Maria up when they landed. But we could leave early and do some sightseeing on the way down. Santa Fe is always worth a visit—we could stop and see Camel Rock or take a side jaunt over to Chimayo.”
“What’s that?” Skye was just sitting, holding her mug in her hands.
Morgan watched her as he spoke. She swayed a little on her seat and every so often tightened up, like she was fighting nausea. Was she sick? “It’s a historic shrine—people say there’s holy dirt that does miracles. I don’t go for that, myself, but it’s a pretty building and a nice example of Spanish architecture from the early eighteen hundreds.”
“And Camel Rock?”
“Surprisingly, it’s a rock that looks like a camel.” He smiled. It was a landmark, though, and worth seeing. He wasn’t convinced that local kids didn’t use it as a hangout at night when it was supposed to be closed. There was often glass and trash around the fence. It was still fun. If nothing else, they’d drive past and he’d point it out. They didn’t have to stop. “I’d suggest a longer trip that included a drive through Lamy, but you really need to know the train schedule to make that worthwhile. And El Rancho de las Golondrinas doesn’t open until June unless you have a reservation. Plus that’s really an all day thing.”
Skye laughed. “Do you need to do some sightseeing?”
“I was just trying to make the drive a little more worth your time. Otherwise, all I’m doing is offering you close to five hours in the truck.”
“And a chance to see my brother and his fiancée as soon as they land.”
“Fiancée? That’s new.”
Her hand flew to her mouth. “I wonder i
f I wasn’t supposed to say anything. He proposed on Monday.”
“Calvin knows?”
She nodded and her hand dropped away. “The way I understand it, Cyan talked to him when they were out at spring break. It’s cute. From the little exposure I’ve had to him, Calvin seems like a fun kid.”
“He is. He’s mad about the horses. If you ever need to find him, chances are high he’s down at the stable spoiling them with apple slices.” So Maria was engaged to Cyan. It fit. The two of them had fallen in love fast at Christmas—right before Cyan got sent to New York City for his job. But it was working. And Cyan had managed to cut down his time away from six months to just over three. It had to mean he was ready to get home and start working on some roots. “So. Road trip?”
Skye closed her eyes and swallowed visibly. When she looked up, she managed a slight smile. “Let me double-check with Betsy that she doesn’t need me here for anything, but if not, sure. Sounds fun.”
“That’ll work. Why don’t you head down to the barn when you’re ready to go? We’ll need to be on the road by one, but I can go any time you’re ready. If we leave by eleven, we could at least grab lunch in Santa Fe—they have a number of amazing restaurants.”
“Okay. And if Betsy needs me?”
“Do you have your phone on you?”
Skye dipped a hand into the kangaroo pocket of her hoodie and drew out her cell. She turned it on and offered it.
Morgan took the phone and tapped out a text to his phone, nodding as his back pocket buzzed. “You can call or text me and let me know.”
“Thanks.” Skye stuck the phone back in her pocket.
“Drink that coffee, don’t just stare at it.” Morgan offered a two-fingered salute as he turned. “Hope I’ll see you later.”
Carrying his own mug of coffee, he stepped through the mudroom door into the morning sunshine. It was still chilly and he wished, briefly, for a jacket. But the stables weren’t far and the prospect of Skye joining him on the drive warmed him more than he really wanted to think about.
Maybe the extra time together would help him unlock the mystery of why Skye Hewitt was the first woman in a long time to make him wish for things he’d written off as impossible.
“Hey. Sorry. Betsy decided we needed road trip snacks.” Skye held up the little backpack she was carrying and jogged the last few steps to the truck. “She wouldn’t take no for an answer.”
Morgan cocked his head to the side and studied Skye. She looked better than she did this morning. Still a little pale, a little thin—like she was on the other side of a lingering illness—but then, women today seemed to crave that thinner-than-necessary look. Maybe that’s how Skye liked things. It was just one of a hundred things he didn’t know about her.
It probably wasn’t even on the short list of things he should try to broach today.
“Sounds like Betsy. She put any of Maria’s cookies in there?”
“The last six.” Skye chuckled. “Wayne grumbled about it, but Betsy said since Maria was home today, maybe they’d be able to talk her into making more this weekend.”
“Knowing Maria, she’ll do it tomorrow when she sees the stash is empty.” Morgan jerked open the passenger door of his truck and held it while Skye climbed in. “You can toss the bag in the back.”
He shut the door, giving it an extra little push to ensure it was latched, and rounded the front of the truck to slide behind the wheel. “Ready?”
“Yeah.” Skye snapped her seatbelt in place. “Betsy said it was a long drive?”
He shrugged. Probably was, if someone wanted to be particular about it. But there were big distances in New Mexico—not everything was slammed together in a crowded, suburban sprawl like some of the states back east. “Two and a half hours. Give or take.”
She nodded. “Don’t forget you promised amazing food in Santa Fe.”
He glanced over with a grin. “Trust me. And, bonus, you’ll see Camel Rock as we drive past.”
“I’ll be sure not to say you never take me anywhere nice.”
Morgan laughed. She had a mouth on her, apparently. “Your brother’s like that.”
“What’s that?”
He turned to look over his shoulder as he backed out of the spot where he parked near the barn, then turned toward the driveway. “Quick with a comeback.”
“Family failing, I’m afraid. You can see Dad got a little of it from his parents, but they’re much tamer than he is.”
Morgan considered before nodding. That was true. Wayne and Betsy could be quick, but they never crossed the line into snarky, which was easy to do. “Are there others?”
“Other what?”
“Family failings.” Morgan turned onto the road that would take them down the hill into town, where they could pick up 68 and, ultimately, get to the highway.
“Hm. A sincere and utter disregard for Jesus and anything pertaining to faith.”
He winced. “That’s a big one. You share it?”
“Not anymore. Neither does my sister Azure. And Cyan. But we’re three of the seven of us in the family, and Dad is so openly hostile, sometimes I think he ought to count as more than one.”
“You pray for him?” Maybe it wasn’t any of his business, and if she shut him down, he’d let it alone. But in his experience, there were a lot of people who were sad that their friends and family didn’t know Jesus, but they didn’t do anything more than wring their hands when it came up in conversation. “Every day, I mean, not just when the mood strikes or you think about it?”
Pink tinged her cheeks. “I try to, but I’m not perfect. I know it’s only going to change if he lets the Holy Spirit work in him. It’s just hard.”
“Worth it.”
“Is it?” She shifted in her seat so she was looking at him. “Have you ever seen someone changed by prayer? Just prayer?”
“Yeah.” He cleared his throat. It was probably only fair, but he liked it better when she was the one telling about her life. “When I was a cop in Chicago, there was maybe one other guy in the squad who believed. Oh sure, a handful of others had grown up in church—maybe even still attended when work allowed—but Jesus wasn’t someone who had a big part in their daily life, you know?”
Skye nodded.
“So, me and Smitty made it a point to pray for the guys by name every day. We checked in when we were done—sort of a trust but verify thing, you know?”
A chuckle escaped her lips. “Accountability.”
“That, too.” Morgan shrugged. “Anyway, it changed them. Not everyone ended up believing—at least not yet—but it still made a difference.”
“You still pray for them?”
“I do. It’s a hard job. If anyone needs prayer, it’s someone who dedicates their life to serve and protect.”
“Why’d you stop?”
He swallowed. That wasn’t a conversation he was ready to get into. Not even with the first woman who caught his eye in a long time. So he’d stick with the answer that usually got people to back off. “I was shot.”
“Ouch.”
He laughed. “You could say that, yeah.”
“But you’re okay? No permanent damage?”
“Not really. I’m told I’ll have a weather-ache in my shoulder when I’m old, but that just gives me credibility, right?”
She grinned. “Sure. So why’d you quit?”
“It’s complicated.” And he didn’t want to get into it. If the brush-off answer didn’t satisfy her, it was unlikely anything else he told her would. Even if he shared the whole story, would it be enough? How was he supposed to explain it to her satisfaction when he couldn’t really explain it to himself?
Her gaze burned into his cheek, but Morgan kept his eyes focused straight ahead. It was the right way to drive. He wasn’t avoiding making eye contact.
Much.
“When do we see this camel?”
He glanced over. She was still watching him with questions lurking in her eyes, but at least she seeme
d to be willing to change the subject. “It’s about an hour from home. So not too much farther.”
She nodded.
The silence in the cab of the truck wasn’t hugely awkward, but it wasn’t warm and friendly, either. Morgan sorted through conversational opening gambits and discarded them as trite. He nodded to his cell phone. “You can change the music if you want. This is my default station, but there are a lot of options if you want something different.”
Skye slipped the phone out of the holder on the dashboard. “What sort of music do you like?”
“I have pretty eclectic taste. Find something you like and it’ll probably be fine.” Even if it wasn’t his immediate favorite, he could listen to anything for a short time. Tommy was a diehard country music fan, and Morgan had survived longer trips than this with him in charge of the tunes.
Skye fiddled for several minutes before settling on a station and sliding the phone back into its spot. “How’d you get from cop to horses?”
He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel in time to the opening of the first song the random streaming service chose. It was a good selection—maybe their musical taste would line up. That was a big, fat check in the pro column. Not that he was evaluating Skye in terms of dateability. She was the granddaughter of his employers and several years younger than he was. If that didn’t scream off-limits, he needed to get his hearing checked.
Morgan cleared his throat. “Basically your grandparents took a chance on someone who was looking for a change and willing to work hard and learn.”
“They seem to do that a lot.”
He nodded. There were more strays at Hope Ranch than people who belonged there. “That they do.”
5
There was nothing boring about a road trip with Morgan.
Skye admired his profile as he drove, his gaze fixed firmly on the road in front of them. Some of that, no doubt, was owing to the nature of the path—this was no straight, flat highway like she was used to seeing on the East coast or in the Midwest. It had hills and curves that, had her ears not been popping, would have been enough to drive home the fact that they were losing quite a bit of elevation.
Hope for Tomorrow Page 3