Hope Flames: Hope Book 1

by Jaci Burton

  While Emma sipped her tea, Martha did all the talking. Emma learned that Ben and Martha never had kids, so Martha became an animal lover, and she unofficially adopted Logan, Luke, and Reid as her own after their father died.

  Interesting that Luke’s mother was never mentioned. She wondered why, but knew it wasn’t her place to ask Martha about that.

  “Lord, listen to me go on and on. How’s the new practice goin’? I used to bring the dogs into Doc Weston. He was a great vet.”

  “Yes, he was. I used to bring my dogs to see him, too. I was sad to hear he was retiring, but so happy when I worked out a deal with him to buy his practice.”

  “Let me tell you, without you taking over his practice, Hope would suffer.”

  “There is the other clinic.”

  “There is that, and those docs are fine, but there was something about Doc Weston. He had a way with animals. I hear tell you’ve got that same magic.”

  Emma’s heart swelled with pride. “Thank you. To be compared to Dr. Weston is a very high compliment. I think I have a lot of years of practice ahead of me to be as good as he was, but I hope to someday be thought of as highly as he was.”

  “Keep doing what you’re doin’, and I think you’ll get there.”

  Emma stood. “Speaking of animals, how about we take a look at yours, and get them vaccinated. Do we have time before lunch?”

  “Plenty of time. Let’s head on out. We’ll wrangle the boys into helping.”

  Once outside, Martha stopped and petted Boomer, then greeted Annie and Daisy. It was clear she was an animal lover, allowing the dogs to sniff and lick her.

  Emma could always tell when someone was comfortable with animals, and Martha was quite obviously one of those people animals gravitated to. Animals could tell, too, when a human loved them, because as soon as Martha walked away, they followed her.

  Luke and Logan were looking at Logan’s truck, so Martha hollered for them and they came over.

  “Let’s get these animals worked on, and then we can eat.”

  “All right,” Logan said. “We can do that in the barn. There’s a worktable and a sink for you, Emma.”

  Logan called his dogs, who followed along, clearly all well trained.

  Emma grabbed her bag from the truck. In the barn, she took the dogs one at a time, examining each, then giving them all their shots. When she was finished, she handed the rabies tags over to Logan.

  “They’re all healthy and in fine shape, Logan. You’ve got them on flea and heartworm meds?”

  Logan nodded. “I get those at the animal-supply store.”

  “Good. I’ve started a chart on each of them, so we’ll send reminders out to you when they’re due for their boosters. And Whip’s stitches look good.”

  “You can thank Martha for that. She’s done a fine job of making sure he’s not running amok all day long. I think she’s kept him in the house more than not the past few days.”

  Emma looked at Martha, who winked. “Whip enjoyed it, too. Slept on the sofa, and lorded it over the other dogs when he went outside.”

  Emma laughed. “He can go outside now, as long as you clean the stitched areas once a day.”

  “Good enough, Doc,” Martha said.

  “I appreciate you taking care of all this out here,” Logan said. “Will you have your office send me a bill?”

  “I’ll have Rachel take care of it. And it’s not a problem doing their exams and shots out here. Especially if I get to eat that great-smelling roast.”

  “Which should be just about ready. So why don’t you both help Dr. Emma clean up her gear, get washed up, and then we can eat?”

  “Sounds good,” Luke said. He and Logan helped Emma pack up her supplies. They shooed the dogs out of the barn and headed back to the house.

  By then Martha already had the table set, and an older man was in the kitchen.

  “Dr. Emma, this is my husband, Ben.”

  Ben was tall and rugged-looking, with a shock of white curly hair. Emma shook his hand. “Nice to meet you, Ben.”

  “You, too, Dr. Emma.”

  “Please, both of you can just call me Emma.”

  “That’d make you like family around here,” Martha said. “Which means we hope you’ll come around more often.”

  “This is a great ranch. I’m hoping Luke will take me out after lunch so I can see more of it.”

  “I’m sure he’d love to do that,” Logan said, giving Luke a smirk.

  She wondered what that was about.

  “Sure. I’d be happy to,” Luke said, ignoring his brother.

  The roast was tender, the potatoes and vegetables perfect.

  “This is an incredible meal, Martha. Thank you so much,” Emma said.

  “You’re welcome. And thank you for the compliment.”

  “So I got a phone call this week from some movie-production company,” Logan said as they ate.

  Luke paused. “Yeah? What did they want?”

  “They’re scouting locations for some film they wanna make, and they wanted to know if they could get a tour of the L&M. They think the locale is perfect for their movie.”

  “Huh,” Luke said, leaning back in his seat. “Is there money in that?”

  “Apparently a substantial amount. They pay you for use of the land for the time they’re on it filming. They bring in their crew, stay in the trailers, bring in their own food. They tell me other than use of the land, they wouldn’t inconvenience us any more than absolutely necessary.”

  Emma watched the interplay between the brothers. It was fascinating to see Luke’s expression as Logan explained the whole movie deal. As part owner of the ranch, he had a business interest in whatever went on. She could tell this was something that would require some thought.

  “Are you going to let them come in?” Luke asked.

  Logan shrugged. “I figured it wouldn’t hurt to let them have a tour, then if they’re interested, they can make an offer and we can all talk about it. What do you think?”

  “I think it sounds like a good idea. When do they want to come?”

  “Next week. Do you want to be here for it?”

  “Not necessary. You can handle it. Just let me know what they say.”

  “All right.”

  “It sounds fascinating,” Emma said. “I saw a movie crew doing a scene in Savannah when I lived in South Carolina.”

  “Yeah? How was that?”

  “A lot of cameras and booms and extras, and it was a whole lot of wow, at least from my perspective. But it was on one of the city streets, so that’s probably why it seemed so jam-packed to me. I imagine if they want to film on some of your acreage, it would be more widespread. Maybe you wouldn’t even notice them.”

  Logan shrugged and picked up a roll. “No idea. We’ll see what they have to say.”

  “I think it sounds exciting,” Martha said. “I wonder if we’d get Johnny Depp.”

  “Why? Do you think you can get Johnny Depp to come over for Sunday pot roast?” Ben asked, glaring at his wife.

  Martha lifted her chin. “He just might. I make pretty darn good pot roast.”

  Logan and Luke exchanged smirks. Emma looked down at her plate.

  After that, the subject of the potential movie on the ranch died, and the guys resumed normal ranch talk. Emma focused on the delicious food, especially Martha’s chocolate cream pie she’d had for dessert. By the time the meal was over, Emma felt as if she needed to walk the entire ranch acreage to rid herself of all the calories she’d consumed.

  “I don’t know how you all stay so slender after a meal like that,” she said, helping clear the plates from the table.

  “Fortunately, ranch work burns a lot of calories,” Ben said with a wink. “Otherwise we’d all be fat because my wife cooks great meals like that all the time.”

  Emma laid her hand on Ben’s arm. “You are one lucky man, Ben.”

  He grinned. “Believe me, I know.”

  “Okay, now y’all a
re gonna make me blush. Luke, take Emma out and give her a look at the ranch while I clean up in here.”

  “Oh, please let me help you with the dishes, Martha,” Emma said.

  “Nope,” she said, shooing them out with a wave of her hands. “You already did your work for the day with the dogs. This is my work, and I get paid for it. Go enjoy this warm weather.”

  Emma sent a pleading look to Luke, who shrugged. “You heard her. Let’s go take a ride.”

  “All right.”

  “I’m going to go check on the cows in pasture three,”

  Logan said, grabbing his cowboy hat from the hook at the front door. “I’ll meet y’all back here later.”

  Obviously, she wasn’t going to get to help Martha clean up the dishes, so she followed Luke out to his truck and climbed in. “Will the dogs be all right?”

  “They’ll be fine. Ben’s going out to the barn. They’ll follow him out there. Once with the pack, none of them will wander off, and Ben will keep an eye on them. Trust me.”

  “Okay.”

  Luke took off down a gravel road with a fence on each side. No one was working today, but there were pens and gates.

  “You work cattle here?”

  “Well, Logan and his crew do, but yeah. They bring the cattle in from the other pastures and separate the herd, do inoculations, and whatever else needs to be taken care of.”

  She stared out the window as they passed by some of the grazing cattle. Mothers and their young stayed close together.

  “They’re beautiful.”

  He laughed. “You wouldn’t say that if you had to get close to one.”

  “Please. I did my large-animal rotation in vet school. I’ve had my hand in every cattle orifice there is. And I know how bad they smell. Doesn’t mean they aren’t pretty.”

  “You think they’re pretty.”

  She turned her gaze on him. “Yes.”

  “You are one strange woman, Emma Burnett.”

  Now it was her turn to laugh. “Shut up.”

  He made a turn, taking her deeper into the ranch property. “This is where the wild horses roam.”

  She saw them, hundreds of horses grazing across a hilly meadow.

  He pulled the truck over so she could climb out. She leaned against the fence post and he came to stand beside her.

  “Oh, wow. They’re gorgeous.”

  “Now that I don’t disagree with. I always loved the horses. Of course we leave them alone other than providing feed for them in the winter, but I always wanted to get in there and ride with them.”

  Their markings and colors were beautiful, from solid black to paints and chestnuts. “I don’t blame you.”

  Suddenly, she felt his hands around her waist. “Go on, climb on up. We’ll sit for a while, and you can watch.”

  While he steadied her, she climbed on top of the wood fence and took a seat. He hopped up and took a spot next to her.

  “Logan, Reid, and I would come up here when we were kids and just watch the horses run. In the winter, we’d drive the feed trucks and drop feed for them. Though they’re wild, they’d come close enough when you were dropping feed that you could almost touch them. But they’re skittish, and we didn’t want to scare them, so we’d back away and go about our business. They sure are nice to watch, though.”

  Emma was transfixed. She loved horses, and these were breathtaking. The horses grazed happily in the meadow, so still for the longest time as they ate. Then, suddenly, the herd took off and ran wild over the hill, disappearing from sight, their hooves thunderous in the quiet afternoon.

  “Amazing.”

  Luke hopped off the fence, then grasped Emma around the waist and helped her down. She noticed his hands lingered for a few seconds on her waist. And her gaze lingered on his. He looked like he might want to kiss her.

  She waited, but then he let her go.

  She pushed back the disappointment, trying her best to be logical about this.

  They had both decided that one time was going to be the only time, so she had no idea why she was upset when he didn’t kiss her.

  This was what she wanted, right? They were friends again, and nothing mucked up a good friendship more than sex.

  They climbed back in the truck and Luke pointed out various working areas of the ranch.

  “It’s sizeable,” she said. “A lot for Logan to handle.”

  “I guess it was Logan’s lot to get stuck with the ranch, though he doesn’t see it that way. This is his life, what he says he was born to do. He loves living out here.”

  “I can see why. It’s a beautiful way of life. Tough, of course, but it would be amazing to live out here.”

  “So you’re saying I was crazy to give it up.”

  Her gaze shot to his. “Of course not. This just wasn’t your calling, what you were meant to do. I spent a lot of time on ranches and farms when I was in vet school. You’re either born to love it or not. And if you’re forced into that life without it being under your skin—a part of you—then you’ll grow to resent it.”

  He nodded. “That’s pretty much what Logan said to me when I told him I couldn’t live here anymore.”

  “So he wasn’t mad at you.”

  “No. It takes a lot to get him riled up. He’s usually a pretty mellow guy.”

  “I don’t know. He looks fierce to me.”

  Luke made the turn to head back to the house. “Oh, I didn’t say he couldn’t get mad, and once there, he’s got one hell of a temper. But it takes a lot to light his fuse.”

  She liked that he stood up for his brother. She watched the scenery roll by. “It’s a really big ranch, Luke. Amazing that your brother handles it all.”

  “He manages, and he’s got a good crew.”

  “Do any of them live on the ranch?”

  “Ben does, and a few of the guys have rented some property on the ranch. A couple live along neighboring land. We’ll hire a few extra hands during busy parts of the season. Our cousins will come help out then, too.”

  She cocked a brow. “Just how many McCormacks are there?”

  He laughed. “Just me and Logan and our youngest brother, Reid, but he lives in Boston. And we have a few cousins sprinkled around here and there.”

  “Yeah, you mentioned Reid earlier when we were looking at photos. I don’t know much about him.”

  “He hightailed it out of here after high school, scholarship to Yale in hand. We don’t see him much.”

  “Yale? Nice. What does he do?”

  “He’s an architect. Ranching wasn’t ever his thing. He was always the brainy one.”

  She leaned back in the seat. “Oh, and I suppose you and your brother were the dumb country boys?”

  “Not exactly, but Reid—now he was smart. Always the studious type. Logan and I used to make fun of him because he always had a book in his face. Logan would be plastered to our dad’s side, learning everything there was to know about ranching.”

  “And you?” she asked. “What were you doing?”

  “Down at the pond, fishing, trying to stay out of trouble and get out of doing any work.”

  “I can’t imagine you got by with that.”

  “Uh, no. My dad had a sixth sense about his sons. He always knew where we were.”

  She laughed. “I can picture that. Though usually it’s the mothers who have their thumbs on top of their kids.”

  Luke’s smile disappeared. “Yeah, she wasn’t much on keeping tabs on us. She was usually busy in the city, shopping with her friends or going to her exercise classes.”

  Emma sensed the bitterness in that statement. “You didn’t get along with your mother?”

  He didn’t answer for a few minutes. “She wasn’t much into having kids.”

  “Yet she had three of them.”

  His lips curved. “Yeah, she complained a lot about how hard she had to work at exercise class to keep her figure, and how having us boys had messed it up.”

  Ouch. What mother would blame h
er kids for that? “She blamed you for the way her body looked?”

  “Sort of. She still had a great body, always watched what she ate and worked out all the time. It was like an obsession with her. I think having me and my brothers freaked her out.”

  “You would think if having children bothered her as far as her body image, she would have stopped after Logan.” When he shot her a look, she touched his arm. “Though I’m glad she didn’t, of course.”

  His lips curved. “Yeah, me, too. Anyway, she wasn’t the best mother. She did the barest minimum, and then after my dad died, she remarried almost right away and hightailed it off the ranch and out of Oklahoma.”

  “You can’t be serious.”

  “Dead serious. She always hated this ranch, hated being tied to it and couldn’t wait to get away from it.”

  And from her sons? Something he hadn’t mentioned but surely felt. She squeezed his arm. “I’m sorry, Luke.”

  He shrugged. “Don’t be sorry for me. She isn’t missed around here. My dad was the one who was always there for us. He’s the one who’s missed.”

  “I’m sure he is. It seems like he was a great guy.”

  “Yeah. He was. He was always hands-on with us. Taught us about ranching, but the important things, too, like focusing on our education, how to act like a man, how to be polite, how to treat a woman.”

  His father could have been so bitter, saddled with a woman who hadn’t wanted to be with him. And yet he’d obviously raised respectful sons. Luke was warm and affectionate, and had been there for her when she needed him. And they weren’t even dating.

  “I’m sorry I never got the chance to meet your dad.”

  He smiled at her. “He would have liked you. Mainly because you like his ranch.”

  She laughed. “I do like his ranch. I like your brother, too.”

  “Eh. He’s prickly. He’s just on his best behavior today because, one, he’s trying to impress you, and two, Martha would kick his butt if he was rude.”

  “I might like to see you two brothers go at it.”

  “The real fun is when Reid comes to visit.”

  “You don’t pick on him, do you?”

  He pulled up in front of the house. “Not more than a lot.”