Cody stood on the back deck of his parent’s home and hunched his shoulders down into his duster. The end of December brought a winter chill into the air. But, he missed the wide-open Texas sky. Today it was saturated in shades of blue, from robin’s egg to the deep blue of Sarah Jayne’s eyes. He shook his head, clearing the memory of those eyes from his mind—sort of—and focused on the view. He missed this, the rolling pastures, the rows of evergreens swaying gently in the distance. He took a deep breath. The smell of clean, crisp air tinged with pine filled him.

Home. Except this wasn’t home. At least not his home. Maybe it was time to make his own home. For his son’s sake. L.A. might make a good home base for him. Although the thought of living there made him feel a bit claustrophobic.

He inhaled deeply again, savoring the clean wash of air before he exhaled. Behind him, the patio door slid open. He turned and watched his mother step out onto the deck. She walked forward and linked her arm through his. Something he’d often seen her do with his father over the years. “Are you sure you want to sell this place, Mom?”

His mother was slow to answer. He looked down at her and watched her face as she gazed out over the land he’d grown up on. A smile filled with nostalgia and sorrow tilted her lips. “It’s time,” she said.

“But won’t you miss this view? And the smell of pine in the air? Even the braying of the cattle first thing in the morning?”

“Most of the cattle belong to Jeb Turner. He’s been leasing the low pasture the last few years now for his heifers. And I think maybe, for a while, I’ll miss it here. But this place is just too much for your father and I to deal with anymore. The stroke has taken more out of your dad than is good for either of us. And I’d rather have more years with him than not.” The love ringing in his mother’s voice was strong and steady.

“I’ll miss it here,” Cody said. He might miss it more than he’d ever thought possible. “Maybe I still have some roots planted after all.”

“You’ve always had roots, Cody. You just carried them with you for a while. But you are a man of the land, a cowboy at heart. In fact, your first jaunts away from home were to work on cattle ranches in Australia if I remember correctly.”

Of course, his mother remembered correctly. He’d worked his way across half the world by hiring on as a ranch hand. But he hadn’t stayed any one place too long. Unlike his parents who had spent their entire married life here on this land. “What will you do then?”

“The Turner’s are interested in the whole place. They offered a fair price. More than fair. And they will let us stay on for as long as we like. They really want the grazing land more than anything.”

Cody absently rubbed the area over his heart. It hurt a bit to think about his parents not running the homestead. This was the last place he’d truly called home. And he’d always thought that one day, when the wanderlust wore itself out, he could come home and settle in to ranch life here.

“What will you and dad do with so much free time on your hands? I can’t see either of you doing nothing all day,” Cody said.

“I have my book club and the Knitting Nanas.” She smiled as she said that last bit. “And I’ll spend time with your dad. Maybe have my grandson down here for summer breaks like the Jayne girls did with Jo.”

“And speaking of your grandson… What is Davie up to now?”

Cody’s mother chuckled. “Davie is still in his pajamas. But I fed him breakfast and gave him and your dad cups of hot cocoa. Your father is teaching him how to roast marshmallows over the fire. I think that’s the only thing keeping him inside right now.”

“Nope. It’s the pajamas. If you asked Davie, he would tell you they are only for inside. He’s got very specific rules about what is proper and what isn’t,” Cody said. “I’m not sure how that happened because from what I remember, his mother and I were both more apt to roll out of bed and face the day regardless of what we were wearing.”

“Well if you coax him out of his pajamas, you could both go for a walk later today. I could pack you a picnic lunch. It should be warmer around noon time but I’m sure I have one of your old coats that would fit Davie tucked away in a closet if it’s still chilly.”

“I think that might be good for him,” Cody agreed. “Sometimes, I’m not sure if I’m doing the right thing with him. Until now, I’ve mostly been a Skype dad. Being an in-person dad is still a work in progress for me.”

“You’ve certainly taken to being a father. Davie’s happy and well adjusted. And you’ve been more than a Skype dad. You flew halfway around the world to see his little league championship game.”

“How did you know?”

“Because Mel makes sure I get to talk to my grandson every week. We have a Saturday night phone date, Davie and I.”

“Mel’s done a good job with him. She’s a great mother.”

“She has. But, so have you,” his mother assured him. “That boy is attached to your hip. He worships the ground you walk on. Or wants to.”

“I’m not sure that is something that’s good for him to do,” Cody said.

“Trust me. It’s a fine thing if a son loves his father. And his nana.” She patted his arm and added, “I’m so happy you brought my grandson home to see me. And that my grandson seems to have helped my son find his way home again.” His mother chuckled. “He’s quite the chatterbox, our Davie.”

Cody smiled at her use of the word our. Davie was a Hayes and that was that. “Yeah, he is a talker. I never realized how alone the quiet felt until I spent time with my son.”

“So, Davie seemed quite excited about the new friend he made at the airport.”

Cody braced himself. His mother was never subtle when she was prying into his life. “I wondered how long it would take him to tell you about running into Sarah.”

His mother laughed, a sound of pure joy coming from deep in her belly. “Children cannot keep secrets. I seem to remember you spilling some doozeys growing up.”

“What? Surely not.” Cody was half indignant and half amused.

“Oh, yes. I remember the time your father got me a Mrs. Klaus outfit and you told him he should get his money back, because half the outfit was missing. Then you told Father McMurphy about it at Sunday service when he asked what Santa brought us.” His mom laughed again. “I think I was as red as that fuzzy bit of nothing when you’d finished. And Father McMurphy wouldn’t look me in the eye for almost six months after that.”

“I didn’t,” Cody said.

“Oh, you did,” his mother assured him. “It was the same Christmas you asked for a super hero costume, the one with the red cape and pajamas. And you wore it everywhere. Including outside.”

“Superman,” Cody murmured. “I always imagined that if I could fly, I could see any part of the world whenever I wanted to.”

“So that was the beginning of your wanderlust.”

“Maybe,” Cody agreed. “But I wasn’t really set on the wandering then. I just…I liked the idea of adventure, of new places, new things. The exploring, I guess. And I always come home.”

“Maybe. But not as often as I would like for you to,” His mom said.

Cody looked down at his mother, met her gaze, and saw the yearning in her eyes, the slightly watery smile.

“I’ll make a point to visit more often,” he promised.

“And bring my grandson with you.”

“I will.”

She paused for a minute, like she was debating saying something more. Ellen Hayes got this certain glint in her eyes and she chewed at the corner of her lip when she was thinking. “You know those strings Davie has wrapped you up in?”

Cody nodded, waiting for her to continue.

“You seem to like them. Maybe you’d like the roots just as much. At least with the right woman.” She patted his arm again then turned toward the door. Before she’d taken more than two steps, it slid open.

His son, mouth ringed in the remains of melting marshmallows, said, “Guess who came to visit us?”

“Sarah,” Cody said as his mother beelined over to smother their unexpected guest in a hug.