Ivy checked her email for the details before punching in the phone number for the Silver Stone ranch.

An unfamiliar female voice answered the call. “Tamara Stone. How can I help you?”

Ivy’s gaze dropped to the bottom of the email, and quickly matched the name to the one on her notepad. “I’m Ivy Fields. You were inquiring about private tutoring for one of your daughters.”

A curious noise slipped over the line almost like a satisfied hum. “Excuse me. I still get a huge thrill every time someone says that. Yes, I understand you’re going to be her teacher this coming year, and after talking to Caleb, we thought it would be a good idea if Emma had some extra one-on-one time with you before the school year started.”

Ivy considered. Assistant principal or not, teachers didn’t rake in the big bucks. An opportunity to make extra cash would make the expense of the new house go smoother. “We should be able to work something out. Would you like me to drop by the ranch to meet with you and Emma?”

“Please. But if you could come talk to me privately first, I can make sure she’s busy.”

“I’m free anytime this week,” Ivy offered.

“This afternoon? Caleb was thinking of taking the girls riding, if we could say around two o’clock.”

Ivy wrote down the time and signed off, working through a few other tasks before making her way up to the ranch.

She was not hoping to see Walker. Not at all.

She was also lying to herself with everything in her. Brad might have poked some sense into her, but plotting how she was going to have a come-to-your-senses discussion with Walker was proving difficult. She wasn’t any further along on it today than she had been last night.

Seemed there were some things that were still tough to do for a shy person—and phoning the man up to demand they talk in more detail was one of them.

So when she drove into the yard and saw Walker sitting on his horse, his Stetson pushed back to reveal the strong features of his face, a tingle shot through her. He was such a fine-looking man. Somehow she had to convince him to be her man.

The group on horses ambled slowly from the arena into the far field as she got out of her car.

A jean-clad woman came toward her with a happy smile and an outreached hand. Eyes flashing brightly behind bright yellow glasses. “Hi. You must be Ivy. I’m Tamara Stone, the girls’ mom.”

Oh, yes. “Congratulations on your marriage.”

Tamara grinned, her face lighting up with happiness “Thanks. It’s been official for a short time, so I’m still giddy.” She gestured at the house. “Come in. We can have a drink and talk about what will work best for all of us.”

They were steps from the porch when the kitchen door swung open and a familiar face appeared. It was Caleb, a little more worn by the years, but looking fighting trim and very content as he paused to slip an arm around Tamara and hug her tight to his body. “Never thought I’d be the one running late.” He turned his gaze to the side and his eyes widened. “Ivy Fields. Welcome back.”

“Thanks. I told Tamara congratulations, but I should offer them to you as well. And I’m looking forward to meeting your girls.”

He nodded slowly, a wide grin on his face. “It’s been a few years. They must’ve been babies last time you saw them.”

“Things change. The world keeps turning,” Ivy offered.

Caleb glanced between them, his feet shifting as if he were impatient to keep moving. “I’d love to get caught up, but I promised some little cowpokes an adventure.”

“It’s okay. We’ll have plenty of chances to get together now that I’ve moved back.”

“Go,” Tamara encouraged him, attempting to push Caleb to where his horse stood waiting at a nearby rail. “I’ll invite her to come for dinner sometime.”

Caleb examined her with amusement in his dark eyes. “You’re not making mischief, are you?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Tamara protested. But she smirked as he leaned in and kissed her thoroughly.

Ivy wasn’t sure if she should look away and give them privacy, or if it was kosher to keep enjoying the sight of two people who were most definitely in love.

It was an easy answer. She watched.

Tamara’s cheeks were flushed when Caleb stepped back, tipping his hat to both of them in farewell then whistling cheekily as he made his way to the rail. He pulled the reins free and mounted up, moving smoothly as he guided the animal to rejoin the rest of the group.

Ivy’s gaze drifted past him to where the others were waiting. Two young girls sat on small sturdy mounts, Walker and Dusty Stone flanking them.

Walker either hadn’t spotted her, or he was deliberately not looking in her direction, which was fine by Ivy because she didn’t need to make this moment more awkward than it was already was. He moved lazily in the saddle, circling his horse around the small gathering, using his body to guide the animal, hands relaxed. Moving as one with the big horse.

Something inside her tightened with longing.

A soft cough interrupted her rapt staring, and Ivy straightened with a flush.

Tamara gestured toward the house. “Sorry for getting distracted there, but that man of mine wipes out brain cells far too easily.”

Ivy chose not to answer. She wasn’t sure if the other woman was offering her an out after catching her staring at Walker, or if Tamara really hadn’t noticed Ivy was all but drooling.

It was easier to simply follow up the stairs and into the kitchen.

Tamara indicated the living room. “Have a seat.”

Bowls full of peapods rested on the island. Ivy tilted her head toward them. “Or I can help while we talk.”

The suggestion pulled a smile and a nod from Tamara. “I’d never turn down the offer of help with my chores. Be my guest. It feels as if we’ve got a million early peas to shell.”

Ivy tugged one of the empty bowls closer and settled in, grabbing a big handful of the green peapods to begin work. “I used to do this with my family as far back as I can remember. The four of us girls would sit at the kitchen table, and Mom would grab a book. She’d read out loud while we did all sorts of chores.”

Tamara nodded in approval. “I like that idea. Bet that made the time pass a lot faster.”

“It did, except when my dad would join in and things would get out of control.” She let her amusement show as she lifted her gaze to meet Tamara’s. “Dad tried to be around as much as possible, only he had a bad tendency to interrupt with what he thought were scintillating bits of information to make the story better.”

“I take it that didn’t go over well?”

Ivy shook her head. “I think it was a defense mechanism to being the only male in a group of five females. I have to admit his sense of humour rubbed off on all of us. Especially Tansy.”

“I’ve enjoyed getting to know your sisters over the past while,” Tamara confessed. “Tansy and Rose in particular. I’ve only met Fern a few times, but she’s got some amazing talents.”

“Fern will do fine. She needs to sow a few wild oats before she settles into one main focus.”

“Wild oats—in a field full of ferns, roses, tansy and ivy?”

Ivy smiled. “You caught that, did you? I’ve always considered it a funny phrase considering our last name, but the idea still fits.”

Tamara laughed with her before growing serious. “I don’t know what you’ve heard from your sisters, but what we’re looking for is help for Emma. She’s been a reluctant speaker, and she had her reasons, but we’re working through them. She’s still hesitant with people she doesn’t know, and in tense situations. And because she hasn’t spoken a lot over the past few years, she has a few verbal issues. I think she’d do better if she got to know you before the school year began.”

“So she’s confident I’m on her team?”

Tamara nodded.

“It’s a great idea,” Ivy said with soft approval. “Might I ask what her reasons were? I don’t want to accidentally set off any triggers.”

“Emotional abuse and abandonment issues,” Tamara said tightly. “A gift from her birth mother, who is out of the picture. Shouting might be considered a trigger, but Emma does okay with her sister going off at her too loudly. And occasionally her Uncle Dustin forgets and he can boom, but she’s okay with that.”

Ivy’s heart went heavy at the thought of any child having been abused. “Someone who loves you unconditionally getting loud is not the same thing as mean or cruel shouting.” She nodded. “Thank you for letting me know. I’m glad she’s got all of you in her life, and that she’s out of a bad situation.”

She was glad Caleb was out of what had to have been a heartbreaking position as well.

“Emma knows very thoroughly that she’s loved.” Tamara took a deep breath. “Very thoroughly.”

Ivy tried to lighten the conversation, working for as positive as possible. “If she’s got some specific school subjects she needs improvement with that will give us a place to start. Then I can adjust our tasks based on what she needs.”

“Sounds like exactly what we were hoping for.”

“And just to reassure you, speech delays like you’re talking about can be gotten over pretty thoroughly. I bet Emma is a smart little thing.”

Tamara’s hands stilled for a moment. “She is, but you can tell that from…?”

A flush struck at having made an assumption and being called on it. “Okay, I’m guilty of jumping to conclusions, but I grew up with the Stone family. The three older boys, at least, and I spent a lot of time here. Walter Stone might’ve been a rancher, but both he and his wife were well educated, and they made sure the boys were too.”

The other woman nodded slowly. “I forgot you would’ve known Caleb’s parents.”

“They were amazing people. It was a shock to all of us when they were gone so suddenly.” It had been a long time, but Ivy still remembered how unreal it was. How much they all expected Walter and Deb to simply walk back through the door at any moment because there’d been no warning. “One minute they were there, and the next they weren’t. I don’t know if it’s easier when someone is ill for a long time—having them suffer while you get to say goodbye—but sudden loss is horrible.”

Tamara was quiet before answering “There’s no good way to lose the people you love, but I think you’re right. Getting to say goodbye is better.”

She looked thoughtful for a bit, so Ivy stayed quiet, the two of them working in silence on the peas. Their hands moved in an easy rhythm while something bubbling on the stove behind Tamara perfumed the air with the scent of rosemary and salt.

Tamara broke the silence. “You know the family well, then.”

Ivy shook her head. “I did, but I’ve been gone for years. I’ve visited Heart Falls when I could, but it usually ended up being around the holidays when everyone is busy with their own families.”

“I’d love to hear more when you have the time. I admire what the Stones built into their sons. It would be good to know a bit more about them to share with the girls as they get older.”

“I’m sure as I spend time with Emma, some of the stories will come out.” Ivy glanced around the kitchen, shaking her head. “This place is stuffed to the brim with memories.”

“I bet. There aren’t a lot of traces of the senior Stones around the house anymore. I think Caleb’s ex-wife got rid of a lot of things.”

Ivy pushed down a rush of annoyance at what felt like an invasion of privacy, but really wasn’t. She had been gone for an awfully long time. She couldn’t expect things to stay the way they were while she moved forward.

“If there are any books around, you can probably find their names written in the front. The Stones loved to work with their hands, and they knew how to deal with the school of hard knocks, but they also read just about everything. I think that’s why my parents approved of me dating Walker back in high school.” Ivy smiled. “It wasn’t an easy task to impress my parents.” She made a face. “Come to think of it, it still isn’t.”

Tamara laughed. “You’re right. That is one thing there are still plenty of. There’s a whole wall in Caleb’s office covered with books. I never really thought about who put them there.”

“Charm’d magic casements, opening on the foam. Of perilous seas, in faery lands forlorn.”

The other woman tilted her head, the sun glinting off the edge of her glasses. “Very poetic.”

“Keats.” Ivy looked Tamara over with interest. Brad’s comment about coming back to a familiar place but not familiar people prodded her into moving forward. “I’m thinking I’ll start a book club. Would you be interested?”

“Depends what we’re reading,” Tamara responded instantly.

“Book list will be set up by the participants, so if you want to get in on the ground floor, let me know.”

“Sounds like fun.”

It was going to be, although she still wasn’t sure if she should willingly let her sisters join in. “If I let Tansy and Rose pick books, you’d better be ready for an eclectic mix.”

“I don’t mind a challenge,” Tamara returned.

They did a little planning then, going through some of the notes from Emma’s teacher the previous year. Ivy made some suggestions, and Tamara countered them, and in the end they had agreed Ivy would come out three times a week at least for the start of the summer.

“Emma’s in the play the Boys and Girls Club is sponsoring. All of her lines are part of the chorus, so if she decides not to speak, it won’t be terrible,” Tamara told her. “But she was so keen on participating with Sasha, I thought it was worth the risk.”

“We’ll hold our own rehearsals,” Ivy said.

Tamara laughed. “Caleb can fill in some of the parts.”

Ivy glanced at her watch. “I should head out. I don’t want to be here when they get back and have that as our first meeting. It would be better if Emma knew I was coming and wasn’t surprised with it.”

Tamara shook Ivy’s hand firmly. “Thanks. And I’ll let you know about the book club. We also need to set up a time you can come over for supper to catch up with Caleb and the girls. And any of the boys we can wrangle.”

Which would include Walker. Ivy schooled her features to stay polite. “Talk to you soon.”

She swung out of the yard at Silver Stone, but when the time came to head right on the road into Heart Falls, her wheels seem to turn automatically in the opposite direction. She made her way up the long road that rose toward the mountain pass before exiting onto a single lane that wasn’t labelled, but was well known to all the locals.

Ivy pulled to a stop in the parking lot and stepped out of the car, meandering along the path leading to the back of the Silver Stone property.

Heart Falls itself belonged to the municipality, but it was attached to the ranch, and here again Ivy fell into another walk down memory lane. She took her time, sauntering along the narrow trail that led all the way to the bottom of the hill and the pool formed by the waterfall.

Three quarters of the way down there was a bench built into the hillside. A log had been notched out and stacked on rocks to form a solid platform. The sun shone down perfectly, and after sitting for a few minutes, Ivy gave up all attempts at being an adult and stretched out as if she were cat in a beam of sunshine. Warm and relaxed.

So. Her return to Heart Falls wasn’t going exactly like she’d planned, but she could roll with the punches. Even today’s visit helped her move another step along the way.

She had to move forward—there was no changing that fact. She felt a little like her sister Fern as she mentally made a list.

One—she was back in Heart Falls for good. This was going to be her home.

Two—she wanted a home, with everything that meant: husband, a family, and her extended family around her, which was why she was picking this spot to stay.

Three—the man she hoped to build a family with was being stubborn.

What on earth was he talking about, needing to contribute?

She was going to have to move slowly. If he really didn’t want to stay in Heart Falls she wasn’t going to force him, but it seemed silly not to talk about this more. It would be wrong to not figure out what was going on in his head before she gave up completely.

But if he was sure he didn’t want her? She’d find a way to accept that and move on without him. They were adults—she could do it if she had to.

The sun warmed her from top to bottom. She worked on breathing evenly and allowing the truth to soak into her. She could move forward, with or without Walker, and yet—

And yet— as she tried to build up enthusiasm for her new to-do list, sadness hovered.

She wanted Walker to be a part of her life. It was the thought that had sustained her for so many years, and turning her back on the idea seemed like treason.

Seemed very, very wrong.