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  When he neared the house, he was mildly surprised to find Chase’s truck parked outside the barn. His sister had phoned him a couple of days earlier and asked him to collect Cricket after school. Letty had an appointment with the heart specialist in Rock Springs, sixty miles west of Red Springs. Chase had insisted on driving her. Of course Lonny had agreed to pick up his niece.

  Letty had undergone heart surgery a little less than a year ago. While the procedure had been a success, she required regular physicals. Lonny was happy to help in any way he could. He knew Letty was fine health-wise, and in just about every other way, too. In fact, he’d never seen his sister happier. Still, it didn’t do any harm to have that confirmed by a physician.

  As soon as he brought the truck to a stop, Cricket bounded out of the cab and raced off to look for her mother. Lonny climbed out more slowly and glanced around. He walked into the barn, where Chase was busy with his afternoon chores. For a while, he’d had an older ranch hand working with him, but Mel had retired in December. Now the two of them, Chase and Lonny, managed alone, with the addition of Tom’s help.

  “Cricket’s with you?” Chase asked, looking up from the stall he was mucking out.

  Lonny nodded. “Letty asked me to pick her up today.”

  Straightening, Chase leaned against the pitchfork and slid back the brim of his hat. “Why’d she do that?” he asked, frowning slightly. “The school bus would’ve dropped her off at your place. No need for you to go all the way into town.”

  “I had other business there,” Lonny said, but he didn’t explain that his real reason had to do with Joy Fuller and the money she owed him.

  “Hey, Lonny,” Letty called. Bright sunlight spilled into the barn as Letty swept open the door. Cricket stayed close to her mother’s side. “I wondered if I’d find you here.”

  “I thought you might want your daughter back,” he joked. “How’d the appointment go?”

  “Just great.” She raised her eyebrows. “Cricket tells me you got into another argument with Joy.”

  He frowned at his niece. He should’ve guessed she’d run tattling to her mother. “The woman’s being completely unreasonable. Personally, I don’t know how you can get along with her.”

  “Really?” Letty exchanged a knowing look with her husband.

  “Just a minute here!” Lonny waved his finger at them. “None of that.”

  “None of what?” His sister was the picture of innocence.

  “You know very well what I mean. You’ve got this sliver up your fingernail about me being attracted to your friend, and how she’d be the perfect wife.”

  “As I’ve said before, you protest too much.” Letty seemed hard put to keep from rubbing her hands together in satisfaction. His sister was in love and it only made sense, he supposed, for her to see Cupid at work between him and Joy. Only it wasn’t happening. He didn’t even like the woman. And she didn’t like him.

  Not that there was any point in saying another word. Arguing with his sister was like asking an angry bronc not to throw you. No matter what Lonny said or did, it wouldn’t change Letty’s mind. Despite his brief and ill-fated romance with Joy, something—he couldn’t imagine what—had convinced his softhearted little sister that he was head-over-heels crazy about Ms. Fuller.

  “What did you say to her this time?” Letty demanded.

  “Me?”

  “Yes, you!” She propped her hands on her hips, and judging by her stern look, there’d be no escaping the wrath of Letty. The fact that Joy had managed to turn his own sister against him was testament to the evil power she possessed.

  “If you must know, I took her the estimate for the damage she did to my truck.”

  “You’re kidding!” Letty cried. “You actually got an estimate?”

  “Damn straight I did.” Okay, so maybe he was carrying this a bit far, but someone needed to teach the woman a lesson, and that someone might as well be him.

  “But your truck…”

  Lonny already knew what she was going to say. It was the same argument Joy had given him. “Yes, there are plenty of other dents on the bumper—including the previous one she caused. All I’m asking is that she make restitution for the second one. I don’t understand why everyone wants to argue about this. She caused the dent. The least she can do is pay to have it fixed.”

  “Lonny, you’ve got to be joking.”

  He wasn’t. “What about assuming personal responsibility? You’d think a woman teaching our children would want to make restitution.” According to Letty, the entire community thought the sun rose and set on Ms. Fuller. Not him, though. He’d seen the woman behind those deceptive smiles.

  “What did Joy have to say to that?” Chase asked, and his mouth twitched in a smile he couldn’t quite hide.

  Lonny resisted the urge to ask his brother-in-law what he found so darned amusing. “She made me an insulting offer of fifty dollars. The woman’s nuts if she thinks I’ll accept that.”

  Letty uttered a rather unfeminine-sounding snort. “I can’t say I blame her.”

  “What about my truck? What about me? That woman’s carelessness nearly gave me a heart attack!”

  “You said she apologized.”

  Granted, after the accident, Joy had been all sweet and apologetic. However, it didn’t take long for her dark side to show, just like it had a year ago.

  Since everyone was taking sides with Joy, Lonny considered dropping the entire matter. Or he considered it for a moment, anyway…When he presented Joy with the bill, he’d hoped she’d take all the blame and tell him how sorry she was…and sound as if she meant it. At that point, he would’ve felt good about absolving her and being magnanimous. He’d figured they could talk like adults, maybe meet for a friendly drink—see what happened from there.

  That, however, wasn’t how things had gone. Joy had exploded. His impetuous little fantasy shriveled up even more quickly than it had appeared, to be replaced by an anger that matched hers.

  “What are you planning to do now?” Letty asked, checking her watch.

  Lonny looked to his brother-in-law and best friend for help, but Chase was staying out of this one. There was a time Chase would’ve leaped to Lonny’s defense. Not now; marriage had changed him. “I don’t know yet. I was thinking I should file a claim with her insurance company.” He didn’t actually plan to do that, but the threat sounded real and he’d let Letty believe he just might.

  “Don’t even think about it,” his sister snapped.

  He shrugged, afraid now that he was digging himself into a hole. But pride demanded he not back down.

  “One look at your truck and I’m afraid the adjuster would laugh,” Chase told him.

  That hole was getting deeper by the minute.

  Shaking her head, Letty sighed. “I’d better call Joy and see if she’s okay.”

  Lonny stared at her. “Why wouldn’t she be okay?”

  Letty patted his shoulder. “Sometimes you don’t know how intimidating you can be, big brother.”

  As Lonny stood there scratching his head, wondering how everything had gotten so confused, Letty walked out of the barn.

  Utterly baffled, Lonny muttered, “Did I hear her right? Is she actually going to phone Joy? Isn’t that like consorting with the enemy? What about family loyalty, one for all and all for one, that kind of stuff?”

  Chase seemed about to answer when Letty turned back. “Do you want to stay for dinner?” she asked.

  Invitations on days other than Sunday were rare, and Lonny had no intention of turning one down. He might be upset with his sister but he wasn’t stupid. Letty was a mighty fine cook. “Sure.”

  A half hour or so later, Lonny accompanied his brother-in-law to the house. After washing up, Chase brought out two cans of cold beer. Then, just as they had on so many other evenings, the two of them sat on the porch, enjoying the cool breeze.

  “The doc said Letty’s going to be all right?” Lonny asked his friend.

  Chase took
a deep swallow of beer. “According to him, Letty’s as good as new.”

  That was what Lonny had guessed. His sister had come home after almost ten years without telling him why. Her heart was in bad shape, and she’d needed an expensive surgery, one she couldn’t afford. She’d trusted Lonny to raise Cricket for her if she died. Cricket’s father had abandoned Letty before the little girl was even born. Letty hadn’t told Lonny any more than that, and he’d never asked. Thankfully she’d had the surgery, for which Chase had secretly paid, and it’d been successful. She’d been married to him since last summer. Even for a guy as cynical about marriage as Lonny, it was easy to see how much she and Chase loved each other. Cricket had settled down, too. For the first time in her life, the little girl had a father and a family. Lonny was delighted with the way everything had turned out for his sister and his best friend.

  “You like married life, don’t you?” he asked. Although he knew the answer, he asked the question anyway. Lonny couldn’t think of another man who’d be completely honest with him.

  Chase looked into the distance and nodded.

  “Why?”

  Chase smiled. “Well, marriage definitely has its good points.”

  “Sex?”

  “I’m not about to discount that,” his friend assured him, his smile widening. “But there’s more to marriage than crawling into bed with a warm body.”

  “Such as?”

  Chase didn’t take offense at the question, the way another guy might have. “I hadn’t realized how lonely it was around this place since my dad died,” Chase said. His expression was sober and thoughtful as he stared out at the ranch that had been in his family for four generations. “Letty and Cricket have given me purpose. I have a reason to get out of bed in the morning—a reason other than chores. That’s the best I can explain it.”

  Lonny leaned back and rested his elbows on the step. He considered what his friend had said and, frankly, he didn’t see it. “I like my life the way it is.”

  Chase nodded. “Before Letty returned, I thought the same thing.”

  At least one person understood his feelings.

  “Is it okay if I join you?” Letty asked from behind the screen door before moving on to the porch. She held a glass of lemonade.

  “Sure, go ahead,” Lonny said agreeably.

  His sister sat on the step beside Chase, who slid his arm around her shoulder. She pressed her head against him, then glanced at Lonny.

  “Did you phone her?” he muttered. It probably wasn’t a good idea to even ask, but he had to admit he was curious.

  “I will later,” Letty said. “I was afraid if I called her now, she might be too distressed to talk.”

  “I’m the one who’s distressed,” he muttered, not that anyone had asked about his feelings.

  Letty ignored the comment. “You’ve really got a thing for her, don’t you?”

  “No, I don’t.” Dammit, he wished his sister would stop saying that. Even his niece was parroting her words. Lonny didn’t want to argue with Letty, but the fact was, he knew his own feelings. “I can guess what you’re thinking and I’m here to tell you, you’re wrong.”

  “You seem to talk about her quite a bit,” she said archly.

  No argument there. “Now, listen, I want you to give me your solemn word that you won’t do anything stupid.”

  “Like what?” Letty asked.

  “Like try to get me and Joy together again. I told you before, I’m not interested and I mean it.”

  “You know, big brother, I might’ve believed you earlier, but I don’t anymore.”

  Not knowing what to say, Lonny just shook his head. “I want your word, Letty. I’m serious about this.”

  “Your brother doesn’t need your help.” Chase kissed the top of her head.

  “He’s right,” Lonny said.

  “But—”

  “I don’t need a woman in my life.”

  “You’re lonely.”

  “I’ve got plenty of friends, plus you guys practically next door,” he told her. “Besides, Tom’s around.”

  At this reminder of the teenage boy living at the ranch, Letty asked, “How’s that going?”

  Lonny shrugged. “All right, I guess.” He liked the kid, who was skinny as a beanpole and friendly but still reserved. “He’s a hard worker.”

  Letty reached for Chase’s hand. “It was good of you to give him a job.”

  Lonny didn’t think of it that way. “I was looking for seasonal help. He showed up at the right time.” When Lonny found him in the barn, Tom had offered to work in exchange for breakfast. The kid must’ve been half-starved, because he gobbled down six eggs, half a pound of bacon and five or six slices of toast, along with several cups of coffee. In between bites, he brushed off Lonny’s questions about his history and hometown. When Lonny mentioned that he and Chase were hoping to hire a ranch hand for the season, Tom’s eyes had brightened and he’d asked to apply for the job.

  “I’m worried about you,” his sister lamented, refusing to drop the subject. “You do need someone.”

  “I do not.”

  Letty studied him for a long moment, then finally acquiesced. “Okay, big brother, you’re on your own.”

  And that was exactly how Lonny wanted it.

  Four

  T om Meyerson finished the last of his nightly chores and headed for his room in the barn. Stumbling onto this job was the best thing that’d happened to him in years. He’d been bone-weary and desperate when Lonny Ellison found him sleeping in his barn. That day, three months ago now, he’d walked twenty or twenty-five miles, and all he’d had to eat was an apple and half a candy bar. By the time he saw the barn far off in the distance, he’d been thirsty, hungry and so exhausted he could barely put one foot in front of the other. He didn’t think he’d make it to the next town by nightfall, so he’d hidden in the barn and fallen instantly asleep.

  Life had been hell since his mother died. The doctor had said she had a weak heart, and Tom knew why: his dad had broken it years before. His father was a no-good drunk. There’d been nothing positive in Tom’s life except his mother. Fortunately, he was an only child, so at least there wasn’t a younger brother or sister to worry about. Shortly after he graduated from high school last spring, nearly a year ago, it became apparent that his father’s sole interest in him was as a source of beer money. He’d stolen every penny Tom had tried to save.

  The last time his money had mysteriously disappeared, Tom had confronted his father. They’d had a vicious argument and his old man had kicked him out of the house. At first Tom didn’t know what to do, but then he’d realized this was probably for the best. He collected what was due him from the hardware store where he worked part-time and, with a little less than fifty dollars in his pocket, started his new life. He’d spent twenty of those dollars on a bus ticket to the town of Red Springs, then walked from there. All Tom wanted was to get away from Thompson, Wyoming, as far and fast as he could. It wasn’t like his father would be looking for him.

  Life on the road was hard. He’d hitchhiked when he could, but there’d been few vehicles on the routes he’d traveled. Most of the time he’d hoofed it. He must have walked a hundred miles or more, and no matter what happened, he never wanted to go back.

  When Lonny Ellison discovered him, Tom was sure the rancher would file trespassing charges. Instead, Lonny had given him a job, a room and three square meals a day, which was more than he’d had since his mother’s death.

  The phone in the barn rang, and Tom leaped out of his bunk where he’d been reading yesterday’s paper and hurried to answer it. Lonny wasn’t back from town yet, because his truck wasn’t parked out front.

  He lifted the receiver and offered a tentative “Hello.”

  A short silence followed. “Tom?”

  Tom’s heart began to pound. It was Michelle, a girl he’d met at the feed store soon after he’d started working for Lonny. Like him, she was shy and although they hadn’t said mo
re than a few words to each other, he enjoyed seeing her. Whenever he went to the store with Lonny, she made an excuse to come out of the office and hang around outside.

  “Hi.” Tom couldn’t help being excited that she’d phoned.

  “You didn’t come in this afternoon,” Michelle said, sounding disappointed.

  Tom had looked forward to seeing her all week, only to be thwarted. “Lonny decided to drive into town by himself.” Tom had searched for an excuse to join him, but none had presented itself, so he’d stayed on the ranch. He liked the work, although he’d never lived on a ranch before, and Lonny and Chase were teaching him a lot.

  His afternoon had been spent repairing breaks in the fencing along the road. The whole time he was doing that, he was thinking about Michelle and how pretty she was.

  “I wondered,” Michelle whispered, then hesitated as if there was more she wanted to tell him.

  Her father owned Larson’s Feed, and she helped out after school. The last time he was in town, he’d casually mentioned that he’d be back on Tuesday and hoped to see her then. He wanted to ask her out on a date but didn’t have any way of getting into Red Springs without borrowing Lonny’s truck and he was reluctant to ask. Lonny had already done plenty for him, and it didn’t seem right to take advantage of his generosity.

  “Lonny had to pick up his niece after school,” Tom added.

  “Oh.”

  Michelle didn’t appear to be much of a conversationalist, which could be a problem because he wasn’t, either.

  “I was hoping, you know…” She let the rest fade. Then, all at once, she blurted out, “There’s a dance the last day of school. It’s a pretty big deal. The whole town throws a festival and the high school has this big dance and I was wondering if you’d go with me.”

  She said it all so fast, she couldn’t possibly have taken a breath. After she finished speaking, it took Tom a few seconds to realize what she’d asked him. He felt an immediate surge of regret.

  The silence seemed endless as he struggled with what to tell her. In the end, he told the simple truth. “I can’t.”