by Hanna Hart
Her little girl was growing up so fast, she knew Ember would understand the concept of Bennett being her bio-parent, but how would that make her feel? She would no doubt feel betrayed, and what would that do to Ember in the long run? Would she hate June? Would she come to resent Bennett or Lincoln? Would she question what was real and what wasn’t in her life?
Maybe June was giving Ember too much credit. Perhaps she would just shrug and smile in her adorable way and say, “Okay, Mama!” and continue playing with her toys.
It was the unknown that was so frightening. Things were going so well now, and June didn’t want to put a damper on the love that was growing between her and Bennett, yet the guilt weighed in her stomach like an anchor.
By two that afternoon, the plane had landed, and June, Ember, Bennett, and Kennedy embarked on a forty-minute drive back to the ranch.
It was more beautiful than she remembered, and based on the giant gasp Ember let out as they pulled up to the gates, she thought so, too.
They dropped Kennedy off at Blackbear Lodge, the main hub of the ranch. This was where guests checked in. It also housed the gym, spa, and sauna on the property.
“I’m sorry I’m ruining your big reunion weekend,” Kennedy pouted as June walked her into the lodge.
Kennedy wasn’t going to be staying on the ranch property like June was, but Bennett thought it was important to get her situated and signed up for work as soon as they landed. He wanted her in a routine, he’d said.
“You’re not ruining anything. I’m happy to have you here, and I know Ember is, too.”
Ember smiled. “Yeah, she was giving me a pep-talk the whole way up here. ‘You can do it!’ and ‘You’re going to be the best horse-tamer ever!’ I mean, clearly she has no idea why I’m here but it’s cute nonetheless!”
“That sounds like her,” June giggled. “And what about you? Are you excited to be here?”
Kennedy shrugged. Her eyes searched the extravagant vaulted ceiling of the main lodge before finding June’s again. “I don’t know.”
“It’ll certainly be different to what you were doing back in Texas,” June empathized.
“I just wish I didn’t have to be here.”
“Hey, you’re preaching to the choir. I was so dead set on this ranch years ago, I swore as soon as we broke up, I would never come back,” June said.
The youngest Brooks child looked at her curiously and asked, “So, what’s changed?”
“Everything. My circumstances, my relationship with your brother, my...willingness to change.”
“Change sucks,” Kennedy said quietly.
“It doesn’t have to,” June smiled. “You’re a friendly girl, Kennedy. I have no doubt you could be in Texas or the North Pole and you would find a new group of people to hang out with.”
Kennedy smirked and shook her head. “I sure hope so.”
After getting settled in, Bennett continued his tour of the ranch with June and Ember. The property was so immense, it was almost overwhelming, but the chic, vintage-inspired map she picked up at the front desk helped her regain her bearings.
Because June didn’t want to stay at Bennett’s house, he set her up with a two-bedroom cabin on the property, but there were others available. There were also one-bedroom units, adjoining cabins, and spacious lodges that looked more like mini cottage mansions than rustic forest homes.
The guest houses took up the left side of the property. They started south and went up to the northernmost point in a zig-zag that followed a winding river stream. The properties were staggered and private so that all of the guests felt they were getting their own slice of rustic paradise.
The cottages were all named after things found in the wild. Thistle Cottage, Beaver Creek Lodge, and June’s cottage—the Yellowbell—was named after the brag-worthy beautiful Montana wildflower. The tiny flower was yellow with a distinct reddish-purple ring at the base of the flower. It was delicate like a buttercup and hung on its stem like a little bell pepper.
“This is gorgeous!” June marveled.
“Look, Mama!” Ember pointed. There’s a front porch!”
“Are you sure it’s okay if we stay here?” she asked, wide-eyed at the luxury of it.
“Don’t be silly. You guys are my guests. Come on, let me show you around!” he insisted as he carried her bags into the cottage.
The cabin was gorgeous. It had an expansive front porch with three handcrafted wooden chairs on it, a wood stove, tastefully decorated living room, log-cabin style walls, a master bedroom with a king bed and ensuite bathroom, an oversized tub, and a separate bed and bathroom for Ember.
Kennedy got to work right away. Bennet was going to have her cross-trained in a couple of different areas of the ranch—working with horses, hosting an experience, working at the spa, and doing front desk. With so many options, he figured she would have to find something she loved.
The rest of them went on a long walk around the ranch. They visited the communal fire pit once it grew dark and listened to one of the experience hosts talk about striking gold in the mountain. It was a great folk-tale, complete with marshmallow roasting and campfire music. Ember loved it. But it had been a long day, and soon, Ember was asleep in June’s arms.
Bennett grabbed a Jeep to drive them back to their cottage, where June was able to put Ember to bed.
Once her daughter was settled in, June sat on the couch with Bennett and curled into him in front of the crackling fire.
“Did you tell Lincoln you were coming this way?” he asked after some time.
“Yes. But I probably didn’t have to. He had already texted me, canceling his weekend with Ember. Again,” she said quietly, trying not to scoff with annoyance.
“Ah, I’m sorry,” he said, rubbing her arm. “That must really bum her out. I mean, I give my parents heck for a lot of stupid things they say and do, but I’ll give them this: my parents were always reliable. They were always there if I needed them for anything.”
“I hate that this is the life I’m giving her, you know?”
“Shh,” he cooed, “You’re doing great.”
“I just worry what this is going to do to her in the long run. Is she going to have daddy issues? Is she going to act out at a young age? I’ve read the statistics on fatherless girls, and I have to say, they’re pretty grim. Behavioral problems, more likely to end up addicted to something,” she said.
“Hey, she’s five,” he chuckled. “Not exactly ready to start a debilitating drug habit.”
June smiled at this, but her expression darkened.
“I want to give her the best life possible,” she said. “I thought that’s what Lincoln and I both wanted.”
“I’m sure he wants the best for her,” he offered, but June wasn’t so sure anymore.
“He wants the best for himself,” she said.
Lincoln had always been on the same page with her about Ember, but since the separation, it seemed like Ember was the last thing on his mind. It’s like something suddenly clicked in him that said, “Hey wait, this kid isn’t even mine. Why am I putting in all this effort?”
Bennett watched the fire, and June studied the way the flames reflected in his dark eyes. The two were silent for a moment before he said, “I know it’s not the same, but she’ll always have me.”
“Is that right?”
“I know I can’t be her dad,” he said, and her heart lilted with nerves. “But there isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for that little girl.”
Chapter Thirteen
Bennett
In the weeks that June and Ember, Bennett had aspired to show them everything. He signed them up for nearly all of the activities, especially the ones for kids.
The only thing that June wouldn't allow was horseback riding. No matter how safe he tried to convince her it was, or how slow he would go in teaching Ember how to ride, June outright refused.
He liked to tease her about it, calling her a helicopter mom, but he was happy to find other a
ctivities for them to do.
Every day with the three of them was a new adventure. One night he signed them up for a painting course, which Ember absolutely loved.
The next day, he took the girls to the spa and treated Ember to her first pedicure. She raved about it for the rest of the day.
“You’re spoiling her,” June whispered as she nuzzled into him.
“So long as she’s at my ranch, she’s getting treated like a little princess,” he said.
“Which I guess makes me the queen,” she winked.
He laughed. “We’ll see.”
Bennett had always felt at home at his ranch, but having June there with him had invigorated his love for Brookside. Every day he woke up energized and ready for another adventure.
The little family had taken a helicopter day trip into Yellowstone, gone rafting, and had been to many bonfires on the property, but Ember’s favorite activity couldn’t have been simpler—playing with the dogs.
“Apricot is so cute!” Ember said of the farm poodle as she reached her hands up into the dog’s curly fur.
“Isn't she?” he agreed. “And you've been giving her lots of love lately, so I know she's been feeling pretty special.”
He watched her play with the dog for a moment longer before asking, “Hey, Em. What do you want to be when you grow up?”
Ember took her time answering the question. She pressed her lips thin and looked at Apricot, thinking hard. “I want to be...a dog doctor!”
“A dog doctor?” he repeated with a laugh.
“I want to take care of dogs. And horses! And a moose!” she continued to chant, causing June to giggle behind her.
“A moose?” he repeated. “Just one moose?”
“Yes,” Ember grinned, turning her head shyly.
Bennett loved to pepper Ember silly this-or-that questions, and she seemed to enjoy it, too. “Would you rather live in a treehouse or an igloo?” he asked.
“A treehouse,” she said.
“That one's easy,” June added. “Who wants to live in the cold?”
“If you could write a book, what would it be about?” he asked.
Ember tapped her finger against her mouth before concluding, “It would be about a dog who goes to outer space.”
“Okay, how about this one,” he began. “If you had to change your name, what would it be?”
“I would be...hmm. Bennett!” Ember announced, jumping as she made her reveal.
He grinned at her answer and walked up to June. Throwing an arm around her, he said, “I approve of your daughter's choice.”
June blushed and cuddled into him. “You're her new favorite person, you know that? I'm starting to feel a little jealous. I've been replaced!”
“Impossible,” he teased.
“I can ask you a million questions, too,” he said, pulling her closer. “What's the weirdest way you've become friends with someone?”
She shook her head. “I don't need your pity questions.”
“I'm serious,” he insisted. “Any wacky encounters?”
This was one of his favorite things about being back with June. The two of them could just talk. They could speak about life, the ranch her aspirations, Ember, and the nothing in-between.
“I don't think I've had any weird experiences,” she shrugged. “Not really. But I mean, Danielle is always meeting all these weird people who want to tell her their life story after about five minutes of knowing her, and I'm like, how do you keep meeting these people?”
“She just has one of those trusting faces, makes people want to divulge everything,” he said. “Jett is like that, too. For some reason, people always want to share their weird stories with him.”
“You're not kidding,” she laughed. “What about you? Any wild encounters?”
“I mean, at the ranch, everything is sort of a weird experience. It's not common to meet people while you're throwing axes or shifting through a tight squeeze in a cave,” he winked.
A shiver washed over June's body, and she began shaking her head as she said, “I could never, ever, ever do that. Me and Megan once watched this 'try not to cringe' video challenge and they had this section about spelunkers who were basically turning into contortionists trying to get through these narrow passages.”
He could imagine June curled up in a chair, watching videos with her sister. She was a big fan of compilation videos, and they spent a lot of their spare time watching online challenges: try not to laugh, try not to cry, try not to sing along.
“Oh, I bet you just loved that,” he said.
“It made me lose my breath. I get anxiety just watching it. I don't know how those people don't just scream!” she grinned.
“Ah, come on. You could do it!”
“Maybe for like a second,” she said, her eyes going wide at the thought of it. “But as soon as I got far enough in that there was no turning back, I'd be paralyzed. They would literally have to dig me out of there.”
Bennett laughed. “I hope that's not a reflection of how things are going to go when I take you down into our own little Lamplight Cave.”
“Oh no!” she said, putting up a hand and drawing out her vowel. “I am not going down there with you.”
“It's not like those videos, I swear,” he said with a laugh. He already had their big caving day planned out and knew she was going to love it. “And if you get scared, I'll be right there protecting you.”
“You promise?” she asked, looking up at him so sweetly, he just had to kiss her.
“I promise.”
Chapter Fourteen
June
As prim and proper as June imagined she would be with Bennett, the truth was she’d spent half of her time at the cabin at the ranch and half of her time at his mini-mansion overlooking the mountains.
Tonight, though, she was taking a break from the ranch and the friends she’d made there to spend some quality time with her daughter.
June and Ember spent the night playing board games and sipping freshly brewed iced tea that she’d bought from The Cider Mill—a little market on the ranch property. The tea was amazing. It was just cold tea and lemon as opposed to the store-brand sweet tea that was loaded with sugars.
When night fell over the Yellowbell cottage, June grabbed a cuddly flannel blanket and led Ember outside onto the porch.
The two sat in one of the rocking chairs and listened to the sounds of the night at the lodge. They heard crickets and buzzing insects, and a faint horse’s bray in the distance. Set against the backdrop of the rushing river by the cottage property and Brookside Ranch had created the perfect outdoor ambiance.
“I love it here, Mama,” Ember said as they rocked. Her tone was sleepy and content, and it filled June’s heart to hear.
“I love it here too, baby,” she said quietly. “Can you believe we’ve almost been here for a whole month?”
The weeks at the ranch had sailed by faster than June had time to catch it.
“Can I just…” Ember began before drifting into a satisfying yawn. “Can I just live with the puppy?”
“You’d rather go live with a farm dog than cuddle with your mommy?” June giggled.
Ember pretended to think about it, then she threw her hands around June’s neck and nuzzled into her. Her daughter’s little fingers were cold as they pressed against her neck, causing June to pull the thick blanket up.
“What if I said you could have both the little puppy and me?” June asked quietly.
Ember craned her neck, offering her mother wide eyes. She certainly looked awake now.
“We’re getting a puppy?” Ember said excitedly.
“Well, no, not necessarily,” June smiled. She’d put her foot in her mouth this time. No doubt, Ember would be begging for a puppy after this. “I meant, what if I told you we wouldn’t have to leave the ranch if you don’t want to?”
Ember gasped. She didn’t lift her head off of June’s shoulder as she looked up at her in wonder.
“
You like Bennett, right?” June asked.
“He’s the best! He’s the coolest ever!”
“Mommy likes him, too,” June said. “Actually, I love him, and he loves me too, and I was thinking maybe sometime we would move to Montana. What would you think of that?”
“Yay!” Ember cheered without giving it a second thought.
“Really? You know that means you’d have to change schools and you wouldn’t get to see Aunt Megan or either of your grandparents as much?”
Ember quieted, considering this. She bit her lip in thought before asking, “Would I still get to see them?”
“Oh, of course. Just, maybe once a month. Do you know what that means?”
“I think so,” Ember said.
“And what would you think of that? Do you think that’s something you’d like?”
“I think...yes!” Ember said decidedly, cheering tiredly into her mother’s ear.
June wanted to laugh or cry. She didn’t know which. With Ember’s enthusiastic seal of approval, she could start living her life the way it was meant to be lived.
The two sat outside on the porch for just a little while longer before Ember fell asleep.
June picked her up and took her back inside to bed.
She would ask Ember again in the morning whether she was okay with moving to Montana. If she still said yes, then June would tell Bennett the happy news.
June couldn’t believe how deeply she’d already fallen for Bennett. In a way, it felt like he had always been there with her, and as she looked down at Ember asleep in her bed, she supposed he had been.
She cuddled in bed with her daughter, drifting in and out of sleep for some time before she rolled over and grabbed her phone off of the nightstand.
If they stayed, then she had to tell Bennett. She’d been trying to tell him for the last three weeks, but no time ever seemed good enough.
She knew she couldn’t protect Ember from the truth, either, and struggled daily with what the repercussions of telling her might be.
Which was better? Telling her at eighteen and having her feel like all eighteen years of her life had been a lie or telling her now and risking messing her up with the sheer gravity of the truth?