“Oh… I’m sorry. I’ll let you go.”
I tucked the phone between my shoulder and my ear so I could talk to her and at least make it appear like I was working to anyone who might see me. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, I’m just bored.”
We’d had this conversation several times in the last few days. “Why don’t you get out of the house? Go into town. If nothing else, go grocery shopping.”
She was afraid of the reactions she’d get without me, Sarah, or Jack at her side. No one could quiet those fears. Randi would have to take the plunge at some point. “I’ll wait for you to get home.”
“Sweetheart, it’s only noon. I won’t be home for several hours.” I knew she hated ranching—or manual labor—but it was all I had to offer her that was under the umbrella of my safety. The safety she believed she had to have to face Mason Belle. “Wanna come out to the ranch and help me? I’m trying to round up cattle to take to auction in a couple days. You could get some time in with Nugget.” It was low to use her horse against her.
“You’d let me ride him?”
A rumble started in my chest, and my shoulders shook as it erupted from my mouth. “Of course. He’s your horse. I’ve just been keeping him company.” We hadn’t talked about the palomino since she’d first arrived back in Mason Belle, but he’d always been hers.
Hesitation held the other end of the line. The only thing indicating she was still there was the shallow breaths I heard whispered across the speaker. “Daddy won’t mind?”
It tore me up to see Randi this way. There was no doubt it would take some time for her to feel confident in this town again, but each time I saw a hint of her insecurity it shredded me. “Nah. We’re going to disguise it as work. So I’ll see you in a bit?”
“Okay.” Her tone had changed. Happiness carried that one word across space and time to my ear—I’d do anything to keep her this way. “I’ll be there soon.”
I probably should have been concerned when Randi showed up approximately three minutes later. Seeing her pull in, driving my old Ford, caused excitement I didn’t need to experience at work. There was nothing sexier than Miranda Adams behind the wheel of a truck that made her appear tiny. That was, until she stepped out. I stood corrected. There was nothing sexier than Miranda Adams in a tight, white tank top, jeans that fit like a second skin, and cowboy boots that added three extra inches to her petite frame.
Jesus.
She was gorgeous.
My heart sputtered, my breath hitched, and when Brock clapped me on the back—hard—I nearly choked on my own saliva. God, I needed to make her legally mine before anyone else tried to steal her away.
Brock’s voice was not what I wanted to hear, interrupting my perverse thoughts of what I could do to Randi out in a field or hidden away in the barn. “Your girl’s here.”
“No shit? I didn’t see her pull up.” I rolled my eyes, but with him behind me, it was in vain.
“Really? Dude, you’re staring right at her.”
I glanced over my shoulder, uncertain how he could possibly be so daft, only to find him grinning like a jackass. “Don’t you have something to do?”
“Yeah. Corey and I are riding the perimeter. Just wanted to see if you needed anything before we took off.”
It was going to take a lot of work to fix the damage the fires had done and time for the land to regenerate vegetation. Selling off part of the herd would eliminate some of the immediate burden; unfortunately, Jack and I had decided to sell off more than we’d originally discussed. Without any real cash flow, we couldn’t fix fences, we couldn’t get the insurance back in place, and we couldn’t continue the medical care for the herd. Not to mention, regardless of who now owned the ranch, Jack still had to be taken care of.
With my sights set on the woman I’d loved since I was ten, I answered Brock. “Nah. Randi and I are going to head out to pull cattle in.” I didn’t have to tell him we were going in search of those that would bring the highest bids; he knew.
If Brock had said anything else, I didn’t hear it. The sight of Randi waltzing in my direction blinded me, and the sound of gravel under her feet muted all other noise. The sway of her hips, the bounce of her hair, and the swell of her breasts had me paralyzed. I’d waited years to hear the grit of the rocks accompanied by the girl who’d always made them music to my ears. My heart was so full, I wondered if it might explode. And just as she reached me, it nearly did.
Randi leaned in, pressing her lips to mine. It wasn’t deep or passionate, but it was familiar and intimate. Casual and confident. “Hey,” she cooed against my mouth.
I tilted my forehead to hers briefly. “Hey yourself.” With another quick peck, I pulled back and took her hand. I’d waited six years for this, and having her with me now made every painful day worthwhile.
She followed me without question or hesitation as I led her to the barn. Most of the horses were either working or turned out in the fields to graze, but there were always a few kept in the stables. Thankfully, Nugget was nearby, as was Midnight.
With her hand still tucked in mine, we stopped at the tack, and I turned to her. She was so freaking beautiful. There was innocence and wonder twinkling in her eyes, and her pouty lips deepened into a crimson hue that Cover Girl should market. “You remember how to saddle a horse?”
Her brows arched, creating subtle lines on her forehead. It took her less than a second to roll her eyes and drop my hand. “Really?”
Randi’s question was rhetorical, so I didn’t bother to answer, and instead, I just winked. Time had changed a lot, but it hadn’t touched my effect on Randi. If I had to guess, I’d bet she was just as worked up as I was. When I reached for a bit, I took the opportunity to adjust myself, so I didn’t end up embarrassed in front of the guys who worked under me. They could imagine what I did with Randi at home if they wanted to, but I’d be damned if I’d give them proof of it.
We worked quietly, saddling both horses. Randi finished before I did, and as much as I wanted to check her work, I refrained. She’d find it insulting, and if there were nothing wrong, then I would have upset her for nothing. The second she put her foot in the stirrup and tried to hoist herself up would be the only proof I’d need. If the saddle didn’t spin, she hadn’t lost her touch. If it did, at worst, she’d end up on her butt.
I kept a close eye on her, taking longer than I actually needed to mount Midnight. Thankfully, Randi didn’t notice that I lingered, and as soon as she’d swung her leg over Nugget’s back successfully, I did the same with Midnight. Neither Randi nor I made a sound. We fell back into a rhythm that had existed between us as kids—each knowing, anticipating the other’s moves.
Together, we trotted out at a relaxed pace that wouldn’t tire the horses, and it gave me a chance to toss out something I hoped she’d consider. “Have you thought about what you want to do with your time? I know you’re bored sitting at home.”
Randi and I hadn’t thought about what she would do in Mason Belle when I uprooted her from New York. She was so concerned with the reception she’d receive that it never crossed her mind that a paralegal didn’t have many career options in Tiny Town, Texas. And I’d been so intent on getting her home, that it never occurred to me she’d be bored. I made decent money. Even with the ranch in a bit of turmoil, my salary wasn’t in jeopardy. So, she didn’t need to work, but I couldn’t chance what had happened with her mom repeating itself in Randi.
“Not much I can do. You know as well as I do that jobs don’t open up in Mason Belle.” She kept her line of sight straight ahead, though I would have had to be deaf to miss the air of disappointment in her voice.
Randi held the reins in one hand and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. I’d always loved watching her delicate fingers try to tame her unruly locks. I admired the way she almost became one with the horse. It was hard to believe it had been so many years since she’d been in a saddle.
“What if I had a job for you?”
/>
She pulled back on the reins, bringing Nugget to a halt as Midnight and I strolled by her. “Austin!” Randi called after me when I didn’t stop. “What are you talking about?” She clicked her tongue and was by my side seconds later, in line with Midnight.
“You could work with me…at Cross Acres.” I turned my head just in time to see her shoulders slump and her spine round.
“I can’t escape it, can I?” She shook her head. It was as if she were talking to herself more than to me. “It’s what I’m destined to do here. Get up at four thirty. Shovel crap. Feed horses. Bake in the sun.” Randi was always so quick to jump the gun, assuming the worst-case scenario.
I chuckled beside her and got her attention. The scowl she offered me was cute, although I was certain she hadn’t meant it to be. “I don’t mean with me, with me.” I took a deep breath. I needed her help with this, but I worried she’d shut it down just because it was attached to the ranch. “I have no idea what kind of shape the books and the paperwork are in. We need to get the insurance reinstated, sooner rather than later. I need help with the business side of the auctions. Someone needs to keep up with and pay the bills and payroll. Jack has always kept meticulous logs on the herd—those haven’t been maintained since the fires, although I do have the records. It’s a lot of work, and no one on staff has the time to do it.”
I’d rambled while she hadn’t said a word. There was no indication by her facial expression whether she thought I was a loon or that there might be some possibility this could work.
It seemed best to keep talking. “It wouldn’t pay much, at least not until we get back into the black, but we don’t need the money at home. And you could set your own hours—work from home or at the ranch. We could set up an office in the house. If you wanted—”
“Okay.” Randi’s brown eyes met mine and tears shimmered, threatening to fall.
I wanted to grab her, to pull her to my chest. “Sweetheart, if you don’t want to work here, you don’t have to. It was just a suggestion.” Being on top of a horse didn’t make consoling her terribly easy.
She blinked, and the tears streamed down her cheeks just before a hint of a smile tugged on the corners of her mouth. “It’s perfect. I don’t know how you managed to come up with something I might actually enjoy that would contribute to the wellbeing of Cross Acres, but I love you for it.”
It had been a long road, and mostly unpaved…but somehow, the dust that gravel had kicked up hadn’t managed to blind us to the truth of where our destiny lay.
And it would always be with each other.
Epilogue
Jack—Five years later
I threw the truck in park, glanced at the clock, and then jumped out, slamming the door behind me. It had been over an hour since I’d gotten the call, and I hadn’t been able to reach Austin since. My feet refused to carry me as fast as I wanted them to move, and the second I made it inside the emergency room, I came to a halt. A flood of memories hit me, and they weren’t the good kind.
The last time I’d stood in this room, I was blind with rage. It was also the day Austin became a man, and I lost my little girl to the person who owned her heart. It took guts for him to step in front of her that day. Almost as much as it took for him to confront me when he got back from New York. I’d hoped that day would never come, but I prayed for it all the same. In order to atone for a sin, I had to confess it…and then deal with the punishment. Austin had made damn certain I understood that if I ever raised a hand to Randi again, there wouldn’t be a hound in the world who’d sniff out my remains. I believed it. Thankfully, time healed most wounds.
I cut loose the memories to focus on the present and found the nurses’ station unoccupied. There wasn’t a bell to ring to get anyone’s attention, and I didn’t want to be rude by screaming over the counter, hoping someone heard my call. It wasn’t likely Randi was in the emergency room anyhow; I just didn’t know where the maternity ward was located since none of Sarah’s kids had been born here. The elevators to my right caught my eye, and I decided it was a better option than waiting.
It didn’t take long for me to get directions from a nurse on the second floor. When I made it to the sixth, I expected far greater fanfare than what I walked into. No one other than me appeared to be in much of a hurry.
The nurse was quite pretty and older than most. The silver in her hair hinted at her age, as did the crow’s feet caused by years of smiles. “How can I help you, sir?” Her warm voice instantly calmed my hurried fear.
“I…um.” I cleared the frog from my throat and started again. “I’m lookin’ for my daughter, Miranda Burin.”
The lady’s eyes sparkled at the sound of Randi’s name, and a subtle smile rose on her pink lips. “She’s got her hands full. I’m sure she’ll be glad to see you.”
It hadn’t occurred to me when Sarah called that they had all four kids with them. At ten, the twins could either be a tornado or a huge help. Rand worshipped the ground Randi walked on, but he and Wyatt butted heads. Nine-year-old boys didn’t want to play with three-year-olds. Add to that that Wyatt stole Randi’s attention from Rand and it often caused a ruckus only Austin and Randi were able to manage. I had no idea how either boy would take the newest addition to the family. “Can you tell me what room she’s in?”
“I’ll do you one better. How about I walk you down there? I’m going in that direction anyhow.”
Another time and another place, I might have been swayed to try to catch the nurse’s attention. Not that I had any idea how to court a lady at my age. “Thank you.”
Turned out we didn’t have far to go, and had I just listened for the sounds of bickering, I could have found the Burin clan all on my own. I didn’t bother knocking since I was certain no one would hear me.
Randi occupied the bed with Wyatt curled up on her side with his thumb in his mouth, the twins were arguing with Rand, although I couldn’t tell what about. And the wrinkles across Sarah’s brow indicated her frustration.
“Hey, Daddy.” Sarah’s shoulders relaxed the second she saw me, and the kids all stopped talking long enough to turn around.
Thankfully, hugging me was more important than whatever debate they’d been involved in. The only grandchild who hadn’t wrapped themselves around me was Wyatt. He was a mama’s boy through and through.
“Where’s Austin?” Randi wasn’t panicked yet, which meant we still had time to find him.
I scratched my head and scrunched the side of my face. “I’m not sure.”
My youngest daughter sat straight up, jostling the little boy at her side. “What do you mean?” Randi hadn’t freaked out, but it would come quickly. She didn’t do anything without Austin at her side, and I was quite certain she wouldn’t want to welcome their second child into the world alone.
“I tried to reach him, but you know how signals are out in the fields, Randi—”
“You left without telling my husband I’m in labor?” When she put it that way, it sounded kind of selfish.
I tried to keep my tone level. “Corey rode out to get him. He’ll be here, Miranda. Calm down.” I didn’t mention that I’d continued to call the entire drive here and kept getting his voicemail. I trusted Corey to get Austin here. “How far along are ya?”
Both of my daughters stared at me like I’d sprouted a second head. They seemed to have forgotten I was around when both of them entered the world, along with four grandchildren, and countless numbers of livestock. This wasn’t my first rodeo, and I doubted with the way Austin and Randi couldn’t keep their hands off each other that it would be my last.
Randi leaned against the pillows and welcomed Wyatt back into her embrace. “Six centimeters the last time the nurse checked. But that was over an hour ago.”
“The contractions bad?” It was hard to talk over the noise Sarah’s kids made.
Randi shrugged and glanced down at her son. The grimace on her lips told me it was worse than she let on, but I didn’t think she wanted to scare
Wyatt. “I’m okay. I just wish Austin was here.”
As if her mentioning his name conjured him up out of thin air, the hospital room door burst open with such force I worried it would slam into the wall. “I’m here.” He was out of breath, but he’d made it just the same.
He bypassed his nieces, nephew, sister-in-law, and me to go straight to his wife. Austin always made sure Randi got his attention first—that would never change. Regardless of how many children she gave him, he simply couldn’t exist without her. No sooner had he kissed her forehead than he scooped Wyatt up and requested an update.
Austin was a good man. Far better one than I’d ever been. Over the years, he’d accomplished more with Cross Acres than I’d ever been able to. He’d done what had to be done to get the ranch healthy after the fires, he’d wooed and tamed Randi, he’d given me a home with a complete family, but most of all, he’d shown me grace and forgiveness. Watching him with Randi—Wyatt perched on his shoulders—I realized just how blessed I was. With the exception of Charlie, every person I loved in life now stood in this room. And as rowdy as they were, they were mine. I wouldn’t trade a one of them.
“All right, everybody.” Austin broke through my thoughts as he tried to rally the herd. “Y’all need to find something else to do until the baby gets here.” He lifted Wyatt and set him on the floor. “You go with Sarah. Next time I see you, you’ll be a big brother.” His voice was as singsong as he could make it.
Wyatt wasn’t buying any of it. Crocodile tears welled in his big, brown eyes. He kept his thumb in his mouth, and before he could refuse, I grabbed him. He was the only one I could still pick up, and I loved to tickle him. His laugh was just as infectious as his mama’s. It was music to an old man’s ears.
“I’ll take ya down to the cafeteria to see if we can find some ice cream. How’s that sound, Wyatt?”
He giggled, unable to do anything more with my fingers dancing on his sides. Sarah and her kids exited the room first. Sarah promised her sister she’d be just down the hall if she needed anything.
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