by Jill Lynn
This time her hit landed on his arm. He chuckled, which, judging by the way her face had turned as menacing as a thunderstorm, was only making her more upset.
“Are you done making fun of me yet? I don’t appreciate you taking the liberty to cart me around like a sack of feed.” She growled the last bit, crossing her arms over a simple white T-shirt that made renewed laughter catch in his throat. He’d been too amused and distracted by her antics inside to notice what she was wearing. Most often when she came home to visit and he caught a glimpse of her, she was dressed up for church. Always looking so put together. Usually in heels, too. Not cowboy boots and faded jeans and a fitted white T-shirt. The simple outfit almost knocked him over.
Though, right now he’d better concentrate on her not kicking him in the shin. She looked mad enough.
“I think I’m done, though I reserve the right to make fun of you about this again in the future. What are you two doing out here, anyway?”
He’d been out checking for signs of coyotes when he’d spotted Rachel and her nephew. He’d stopped to talk to her because he thought they needed to get some things worked out. Like, was she still planning to help the youth build the float? If not, he’d need to find someone else. Hunter was happy to help with the float building, but he didn’t feel qualified to be the only one in charge of a group of teens.
“Grayson wanted to explore.” Rachel stared straight forward after answering him, her jaw set in that stubborn look she did so well.
“Did you back out of helping with the youth?”
Her cheeks pinkened, highlighting her freckles. “No. I didn’t.”
“So you’re committing?”
Her gaze snapped to him. Oops. Bad choice of words.
When she finally nodded, his worry decreased. “That’s good. They need someone like you in their lives.”
At that, her demeanor softened a bit. “Did you back out?”
“Nope. Wouldn’t want you to lose out on the delight of working with me.”
That earned him an eye roll and a shaking head. Just like the old Rachel.
He nodded over to Grayson, who was now inspecting under the front porch as though he might find a treasure. “Ran into Grayson on my way in and he told me he was planning to move out here.”
Cute kid. Always dressed like a miniature cowboy, that one. Boots. Jeans. T-shirt. Coupled with scrawny arms, a mop of brown hair and eyes that brimmed with curiosity.
“I wish.”
“What’s that mean?”
Rachel peered through the front window before releasing an audible sigh. “Cash’s house is so crowded with me added in. Grayson was asking if this could be his fort, and I was thinking the same thing. That I want to move out here.”
“With the mouse?”
Was that a halfway smile claiming her mouth? Hunter should call the Fredericksburg Standard. News like that could make the front page.
A visible shudder followed. “Definitely not with the mouse.”
“You know, you can get rid of mice. The place didn’t look too bad when I was in there. Seemed mostly cosmetic. Cleaning. Paint. Looked like someone had the law on their tail and left half their belongings. Granted, you were screaming like someone was after you, so I didn’t get a great look.”
“I could never do it on my own, and I’m not asking Cash. He has enough to do.”
“I would help you.” The words were out of his mouth before he had time to think, but once they registered, he decided the idea wasn’t so crazy. If he was going to follow through with the two of them getting along and putting the past behind them, he might as well jump in with both feet.
Curiosity and concern mingled in the depths of her distractingly beautiful green eyes. Maybe even a bit of fear. “Why?”
“Why not?”
It was easier to answer that way than to tell her the truth. I don’t want to turn into my father seemed like a strange answer. There was one thing he’d never seen his dad and mom do—make amends. Forgive. Move on. Therefore, that’s exactly what Hunter planned to accomplish.
And this way, when Rachel did her next disappearing act for the job she wanted and came back to visit her family, she and Hunter would be able to get along. Wish each other well.
She studied the toes of her camel-colored boots as though they held the answer to all of the world’s problems. “It was nice of you to offer, but I can’t accept.”
Couldn’t? Or wouldn’t? He could pretty easily guess the answer to that. Her response didn’t surprise him. She wasn’t the type to welcome his offer—or anyone’s for that matter—with open arms. Nope. Rachel had always had a bit of an edge to her, and that was putting it nicely. The woman had more spunk in her pinkie finger than most people had in their whole body. It had been one of the things he’d liked about her back then. Still did.
“We need to get back.” Rachel shut the front door of the house. She grabbed the small cowboy hat propped on the stair railing and tromped down the steps, heading for their horse and calling Grayson at the same time.
After a few seconds of complaining from the boy, Rachel and Grayson mounted up. They took off with quick waves in his direction.
She was sure in an all-fired hurry to get out of here. Away from him. Not that he blamed her. He’d been a jerk when they were younger. He’d asked her to stay when he shouldn’t have.
Some people just weren’t built for this life.
Hunter had learned that lesson too well. A painful brand had been burned into him because of his mother’s unhappiness. She’d detested ranching and small-town living. Yet Dad had convinced her it would grow on her one day. He’d pursued her until she’d agreed to marry him and live on the ranch. Hunter had heard the beginning of their story many times.
But the middle and end had never improved. In all of his childhood memories, his mom had been sad. Lethargic. Broken. When he was nine, she’d given up pretending and left them. Moved to Dallas.
After, Dad had sunk further and further out of reach. It wasn’t that they didn’t see each other. It was that they didn’t really talk about anything besides ranchTing. His sister, Autumn, had been his saving grace. Three years older, she’d taken to mothering him.
Hunter wouldn’t copy his father’s mistakes again. He’d been selfish asking Rachel to stay and marry him. She’d only been eighteen. He’d been twenty. Hunter had watched his mom live a life she didn’t want. He’d witnessed her unhappiness. He’d known better than to ask Rachel to do the same, yet he’d been grasping at straws to keep her in his life.
And, in the process, he’d lost her completely.
Suggesting they get married had been impetuous of him, and when Rachel had said she loved him but she couldn’t, he’d reacted so badly. Out of hurt, he’d pushed her away.
Not a shining moment for him.
But it was time to turn all of that around. Hunter had been at a loss about how to prove to Rachel that they could get along again. She’d built so many walls between them over time—and he’d only been too happy to help her hold them steady—that he wasn’t sure where to begin.
But now that he knew about the house, she’d given him the perfect way to start.
He only hoped it wouldn’t backfire on him.
Chapter Three
Rachel surveyed the small ranch house from the doorway, frustration zinging along her spine. It was Wednesday, and she and Grayson had gone out for another ride. He’d been antsy after it rained all day Tuesday, and he’d wanted to visit the house again—which he’d started referring to as his fort. But since they’d been out on Monday, someone had been here. Supplies were sitting just inside the door, paint cans included. The mountain of trash was gone.
All fingers pointed to Hunter, since no one else even knew what she’d been thinking. What part of no didn’t he understand? She did not appreciate his intruding in her
life like this.
Rachel slipped her cell phone from her pocket, hoped the reception would work and called her friend Val. The two of them had been best friends since junior high, and the fact that Val still lived in Fredericksburg was, for Rachel, a definite plus in being home. They’d kept up their friendship over the years—one of the only people Rachel could claim that about. Val had always been levelheaded back when Rachel had been anything but. Now she hoped the two of them were on a more similar plane. Except, at the moment, level was not a feeling Rachel was experiencing.
“Hey,” Val’s voice sounded in her ear. “Connor is eating mac and cheese, which means I’ll probably have to go in a sec when he puts a piece of it up his nose even though I’ve tried to teach him not to do that a million times.”
“Okay.” Not for the first time, Rachel thought what a strange thing motherhood was. “You are never going to believe what Hunter did.”
“Ooh, what?”
She explained about finding the deserted old ranch house, running into Hunter and the conversation that had ensued. “And now he’s started fixing it up after I told him no. I didn’t even know he’d been out here and a bunch of stuff got done.”
“Huh.” Prolonged silence came from Val’s side of the conversation. “That’s...horrible?”
“It is horrible! I don’t want him involved in my life.”
“Technically he’s not involved. You weren’t even there when he did anything.”
“Whose side are you on, anyway?”
A stifled cough-laugh combination answered her. “I mean, how could he just help you like that when you didn’t even give him permission?”
“Your sarcasm is impressive.”
“Thank you. I learned it from you. So, do you want my old-married-lady advice?”
“You’ve been married two years, so I don’t think that qualifies you as headed out for pasture yet, but sure.” Rachel’s mouth curved despite her annoyance with Hunter. “Hit me with it.”
“Let him help. You’re out of space at the house. I’d offer to let you stay here—”
“You guys don’t have room for me, either.”
“That’s why I’m telling you to accept his offer. At some point, you need to let go of what happened between the two of you. This is the perfect opportunity.”
“No.”
“Just...no? That’s all you’ve got?”
“Yep.” Rachel might be using toddler logic right now, but she didn’t care to adjust her maturity level. She didn’t have to explain her feelings, did she? How could she, when she didn’t even understand them herself? “Why would he do this?”
“Maybe he likes you.” Val stretched out the phrase, sounding as though she was imitating one of the second-grade students she taught.
“Ha.” Rachel swallowed, mouth suddenly devoid of moisture. “That’s not funny.”
Laughter floated into her ear, then stopped abruptly. “Oh, no.” Resignation laced Val’s tone. “There went the mac and cheese. Gotta go.”
They disconnected and Rachel glanced at the pile of supplies. What was Hunter thinking? Could Val’s joking insinuation be true? Was Hunter trying to...? No way. He couldn’t have feelings for her. Could he? He had talked to her more in the last few days than he had in years. Was he trying to rekindle things? It made no sense, especially since he always seemed annoyed or offended by her presence. At least, he had before this visit home.
Rachel didn’t know what to think. It couldn’t be. But why else would he do something like this?
It wasn’t like he hadn’t gotten a crazy idea regarding them before. His suggestion they get married had been completely unexpected.
Back in high school, Rachel had made some stupid decisions about guys. She’d dated one she would rather forget and had done a number of things she regretted during her teenage years.
In the last part of her senior year of school, when she and Hunter had first started hanging out, she’d been wary of making another mistake. Another stupid decision about another guy. But she’d quickly noticed the differences in Hunter. He’d been genuine. Always respectful. He’d made her laugh. He was one of the few people she’d talked to about her parents and he’d talked to her about his mom.
They’d hung out a long time before they’d even so much as held hands. Their first kiss had been...heart pounding. They’d been on a walk. He’d been teasing her about something, and the next thing she knew, he’d stopped, buried his hands in her hair and kissed her. Kissed her as though she was oxygen and he needed to breathe. After, he’d backed away. His grin slow. Easy. “I knew it.” Then he’d grabbed her hand and kept walking while she stumbled to find coherent thought again.
She’d fallen for him. Hard.
Falling for him had been the easy part. But even back then, they’d known she was moving for school. The knowledge had hung over them like a storm cloud that followed their every step. At first it hadn’t been menacing—just something to deal with in the future. But as the time for her to leave had neared, the cloud had changed from might-rain-sometime into a dark, severe-weather thunderstorm.
They’d avoided talking much about her looming departure for college, neither of them knowing what to do about it.
The week before she’d been set to move, they’d been sitting on the porch swing at his dad’s house, concern over the future stealing their words, when Hunter had squeezed her hand. “Don’t go,” he’d said. Her head had snapped in his direction. “Stay. I know people will say we’re young, but I don’t want to do life without you. Marry me.” At first, his eyes had flashed with surprise at his words, but then he’d leaned toward her as if the idea had gained momentum. “We should get married. We could elope.”
Rachel remembered precisely how she’d felt. Like a car had rammed into her. She’d loved Hunter, but had known instantly that she couldn’t. As much as the thought of leaving him had hurt and refusing him had felt like the hardest thing she’d ever do, she’d been certain she had to follow through with her plans.
Her stomach had tied itself into thousands of knots. She’d tried to tell him how much she cared about him...but that she couldn’t stay. Couldn’t marry him. Not at eighteen.
In the middle of her explanation, he’d shut down. His eyes had hardened. And then he’d told her to go. That if she didn’t feel the same way about him as he did about her, she might as well leave immediately. In the next week, before she’d left, they hadn’t even seen each other. It had been so painful.
She couldn’t do that again. Rachel didn’t know what Hunter was thinking, but she had to talk to him. They were going to be working together with the youth. They’d be seeing enough of each other that she had to make sure she was clear with him about her future plans and that nothing could happen between them. They couldn’t go back down the road they’d once traveled.
It was Wednesday. Tonight was the first night of working on the float with the teens. She’d head over early and have a conversation with him.
She had to. Because, despite having moved on from their younger years, she knew she couldn’t survive that experience twice.
* * *
“Are you sure you know what you’re doing?”
Autumn was perched on the desk in the barn office/storage area while Hunter rummaged through the bins the church had given him for float decorating.
When he glanced up, her pointed look told him she expected an answer. His sister packed a lot of punch for five foot two. But despite her petite size, she’d always played and fought just as hard as the boys.
“Yes, I know what I’m doing.” He set aside two bins. “Just because you’re older than me doesn’t mean you’re wiser.”
“You are correct.” She twisted her light brown hair over one shoulder. “Age doesn’t matter, but I am wiser.”
He didn’t bother answering that sassy comment.
“You do remember what happened the last time? I mean, I think Rachel’s great and all, but you were a mess when she left.”
He didn’t need the reminder. “I wasn’t a mess.” He might have been a small version of that word. “But that’s not going to happen again. This is about being a friend. What I should have been to her in the first place before I let stupidity cloud my judgment. She needed someone to be there for her, and back then I made it about me and what I wanted. She deserves to be treated well, and while I didn’t accomplish that the last time, I am going to this time.”
“So, you’re just going to help her with this house whether she wants it or not?”
“Pretty much.”
“And you’re trying to prove...”
“That I’m not Dad.” The words slipped out, and Hunter almost rolled his eyes. How did Autumn always pull information out of him he didn’t plan to give?
Her eyebrows stitched together. “Hunter, you’re nothing like Dad. You work hard, so I guess you have that in common, but that’s about it.”
Except for the part where he’d asked Rachel to stay and he shouldn’t have. And the next part, where he’d been a jerk and reacted badly when she’d said no. Autumn didn’t understand because she and her husband Calvin had met when they were older. Dating...marriage...it had all just fallen into place for them without any stupid decisions to atone for.
“Think about it this way. If you knew you couldn’t have Calvin as anything more than a friend, wouldn’t you want that? And if you’d hurt him, wouldn’t you want to rectify that?”
Autumn studied him. Finally, she nodded, but her brow remained pinched. “I just don’t want to see you get hurt.”
He tapped a fist on his chest. “I’m practically a superhero with all of these muscles.”
She groaned in response, then stood and rubbed a hand over her growing belly. His nephew was coming in about three months, and Hunter was more than ready. It had been a rough pregnancy, and Autumn had been sick for much of it.