Robin enjoyed dinner with Shane and his brothers. The cluelessness of Austin was just too fun, and Shane seemed to enjoy his role of oldest brother with them both. He kept the calm façade in place, and reminded Dylan and Austin not to stay too long at May’s, before they left the cabin together.

“Well, we got a few minutes together,” he said.

“It’s fine,” she assured him. “They’re great. I like them.”

“They are great.” Shane kept his eyes on the ground, and Robin resisted the urge to slip her hand into his. After all, he had to live here, with all the other cowboys, and she didn’t want to cause any problems for him.

“You go quiet around them,” she said.

“Do I?”

“You did tonight.”

“Just tired.”

“We sat around all day.” She giggled, sucking back the sound when his warm, wonderful fingers touched hers. On the next step, he latched onto her hand properly and tugged her a little closer. She noticed that they’d left the cabins behind now, and it would be hard for someone to see them as they walked along the side of the hay barn.

“Sometimes sittin’ is as hard as workin’,” he said. “It’s like church.”

Robin had been touched by his concern for her, and for his brothers. “So…I don’t go to church much.”

“Yeah, me either.”

“No?”

“When I can,” he said.

“But May and Kurt like to go every week, and since I’m the backup foreman—”

“Co-foreman,” she said.

Shane smiled, his blue eyes practically dancing with her correction. “I usually let them go and I stay here. It’s…quiet on Sunday mornings out here. It’s nice.”

“I’ve always like a big, open sky, with room to think,” she said. She didn’t understand how people lived in cities, shared walls with neighbors, or went home to the same house day after day, week after week, year after year.

Her mother had said she had a gypsy soul, just like her father, and she’d better find something that would satisfy her craving to always try something new, be on the go. Seeing as how Robin had never met her father, she didn’t like being compared to him much. But she did have a seething need to be free to go where she wanted, when she wanted.

At the same time, Shane had spoken true in his cabin. She was still looking for her roots, and she didn’t know how to put them down without knowing where she should plant them. She’d settled on Texas, and that alone had taken her a while. She’d bought a house in Temple, but she hated going home to it.

“I lost you,” Shane said. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”

Without giving herself time to censor anything, Robin said, “I’m thinking about how much I love my tiny house.”

“Oh yeah? Why’s that?”

“Because I can take it anywhere with me.”

“No roots,” he murmured, and when he lifted his chin, he blew out a long breath. “So you’re headed over to Levi’s on Monday, is that right?”

“Yes.” Confusion squirreled through her at the rapid change in conversation. No roots rang through her mind, but she didn’t repeat it and didn’t question him about it. “I’ll be there for a few days.”

“All week, I think the schedule said.”

“If that’s what the schedule said.” Robin hadn’t looked at it yet. Tomorrow was Sunday, and she’d spent the morning catching up on her sleep and the afternoon planning her week. As much as she didn’t like being tied down, she liked being late or behind even less.

They approached the storage shed, and Shane dropped her hand as someone came down the front steps of the homestead. “Shane, I need to talk to you for a minute.” Dwayne nodded his hat at her. “Hey, Miss Robin. Sorry about the hail this morning. You seem okay.”

“I’m fine.” She gave him her best smile so he’d know she was telling the truth. “I think my house has a tiny leak in the roof, and Shane said he’d help me with it.” Her hand felt naked without Shane’s to anchor her, and she slipped it into her pocket so no one could see how it twitched.

“Can I steal him for a few minutes? Fifteen, tops.”

As Shane was already walking toward his boss, Robin didn’t see how she had a choice. She said, “Sure thing,” and continued on her way around the shed.

She’d been in a hurry earlier, so she hadn’t had time to examine the roof or anything. But when she opened the front door, a new puddle sat in the same spot on the second stair leading up to her loft. She definitely had a leak.

Misfit yipped and Robin scooped her off the floor. “Hey, girl. Were you scared this morning? I’m sure you were.” She held the dog under one arm while she bent to grab her water bowl. “Let’s get dinner, should we? Are you hungry?”

The dog didn’t answer. She never did. But Robin continued talking to her as she scooped new food into her bowl and wiped up the spilled water before setting down that bowl too.

“So I told Shane I’m interested.” Robin used the towel to clean up the puddle on the stairs and then set a juice pitcher there so her wood wouldn’t warp.

“I don’t even know what that means.” She sighed as she sat next to the pitcher and watched her little dog lap up tonguefuls of water. “Does it mean I like him? Or I find him interesting and maybe I’ll like him if I get to know him?”

Misfit threw her a look that said, How should I know? and started eating. Robin rested her elbows on her knees, her mind racing with wild thoughts. She wasn’t sure how long she sat there, thinking about Shane, before she realized Misfit had finished eating and the little dog was now curled up at Robin’s feet, snoozing.

And Shane still hadn’t come over from the homestead. She stood, intending to wait outside on her rocking camp chair, when her phone bleeped.

Shane: I can’t come right now, he’d texted. Rain check for tomorrow afternoon?

She frowned at her phone, wanting more of an explanation. “Or maybe you just want to spend more time with him,” she muttered as she thumbed out a friendly No problem! and sent it.

So Robin sat on her front porch, in her favorite spot, with her dog on her lap, and rocked. Something about the action calmed her, allowed her to see things clearly, and come to decisions more easily. Tonight, she’d rocked forward and back three times before she blurted, “I definitely like Shane Royal.”

And this time, the admission made her lean her head back and smile. Three years ago, it had scared her senseless. He’d asked what had changed, and Robin hadn’t been able to answer him. But as she rocked, she knew.

She had changed.

Monday morning found her walking down the aisle in Levi Rhodes’s premier boarding stable. “This place is nicer than my house in Temple,” Robin murmured as she took in the spotless floors, the solid wood walls, the numerous stalls. Each one held a horse she’d be attending to this week.

The office sat way down at the end of one of the stable buildings, and when she knocked on the closed door, a woman called, “Come on in.”

Surprise and curiosity pulled through her. Levi had never used an office manager, but Robin supposed a lot could’ve changed in the year since she’d been here.

“Heather?” The brunette sitting behind Levi’s desk was definitely Dwayne’s sister—and someone Robin considered a true friend.

“Robin.” Heather beamed as she stood and came around the desk. She laughed when she hugged Robin, and Robin imagined that if she’d had a sister, it would feel like hugging Heather.

“I’d heard you were back in town.”

Robin pointed to the desk calendar. “I’m sure that told you too.”

“My brother told me.” Heather perched on the edge of the desk and grinned at her. “Surprised to see me here?”

“Of course not. I came to the wedding.” Robin glanced around the office, which definitely bore a hint of Heather’s feminine hand with the new curtains and the dozens of pictures she’d taped to the walls and cabinets. “How’s Elle doing?”

“One more year of high school,” Heather said. “She wants to go to New York and model. I’m sure you can imagine what Levi says about that.”

Robin had barely drawn a breath to respond when Levi said, “Hey, I’m nothing but supportive of my sister’s crazy dreams.”

“To her face.” Heather cocked her right eyebrow at him.

“That’s all that matters.” He edged into the office too, and Robin shifted to her right as he looked at her. “Hey, Miss Robin. Good to see you.” He gave her a quick side-hug and then kissed Heather fully on the mouth. “Mm, good to see you too, Mrs. Rhodes.”

She giggled like a giddy schoolgirl and swatted at his biceps. “Behave yourself. We’re not alone.”

Embarrassment heated Robin’s face, and she cleared her throat as Heather continued to gaze up at Levi like they were indeed very much alone. At the same time, she couldn’t tear her eyes away from the two of them, so obviously in love with each other.

Robin couldn’t remember her mother dating anyone, ever. She’d always say, “I have you, Robin, I don’t need anyone else.” She’d never gone on a date, never brought anyone home. It was always just Robin and her mom.

Robin had the sudden urge to talk to her mother. “Excuse me,” she said and made a quick exit before any more kissing happened. She stepped past the tack room and outside, her fingers tapping to make the call.

“Robin, sweetie, how are you? How’s Hill Country?” Her mother sounded upbeat and positive, same as always. She never answered the phone with hello, and she always asked how Hill Country was.

“Beautiful,” Robin said, completing the conversation about Texas. Her mom hadn’t tried to get her to stay in Georgia. Hadn’t questioned her decision to sell her home in Temple. Hadn’t said a word about horseshoeing school in Oklahoma.

No, Robin’s mother had been nothing but a support for all of Robin’s thirty-two years of life.

“What’s goin’ on then?” The Georgian accent made Robin smile as it wrapped her in warmth.

“Just thinkin’ about you, Ma. How long until you retire?”

“Sixty-eight days,” she said instantly. She laughed. “Not that I’m counting down.”

Robin guffawed. “No, of course not.” She sobered quickly, the question she wanted to ask teeming against the tip of her tongue. “Mom, how come you never dated while I was growing up?”

Silence came through the line, and Robin didn’t like it. She had an open relationship with her mother, and always had. Whatever Robin asked, her mother had answered.

Until now.

“Mom?”

“I guess I didn’t want to make life more complicated,” she said. “For you, or for me.”

Robin nodded, though her mom couldn’t see that.

“I had you, honey, and I needed to figure out how to make things work for us. I never needed a man.”

Robin had heard that before. You don’t need a man, Robin. You want to do something? Go do it.

Robin had never wondered about her father. Her mother had always been enough. She’d never asked about her father either. Her mom had told her since she was old enough to talk that he’d left when he’d found out her mom was pregnant. They weren’t married, and he didn’t want to be a father.

“But I wanted to be a mother,” she’d said. “And you’re the best daughter I could’ve ever hoped for.”

Robin had heard that a lot too. She’d believed her mom. She’d never needed a man.

Until Kevin.

Her heart twisted painfully in her chest, and she turned away from the pastures dotted with horses. “I just wanted to hear your voice,” she said, her own straining along the edges.

“Have you met someone, Robin?” Her mother spoke slowly, with care, and Robin pressed her eyes closed.

“I don’t want to get hurt,” she whispered.

“Not all men are like your father,” she said. “Or like Kevin. What’s this man’s name?”

“Shane,” Robin said without any direction from her brain.

“The same Shane you mentioned a while ago?”

Robin opened her eyes. “When did I mention him?”

“I don’t know. A few years ago, maybe.”

Robin didn’t remember talking to her mom about Shane, but anything was possible. The door behind her opened, and she glanced over her shoulder to see Heather standing there. “I need to go, Ma. Love you and I’ll call later, okay?”

After her mom said good-bye, Robin pocketed her phone and faced her friend. “My mom.”

“Levi’s ready for you,” she said. “Everything okay at home?”

Home. Robin wasn’t even sure where that was at the moment. “Yeah, my mom’s fine.” She moved to step past Heather, but she blocked the way.

“Really? You look…sad.”

Robin looked into Heather’s dark eyes and wanted to trust someone. Tell someone. Be friends with someone. Make roots with someone.

“I’m not sad,” Robin started, trying to sort through how she felt. “I like Shane Royal.”

Heather fell back a step, her eyebrows lifting. “Oh. Cowboy who works my brother’s ranch?”

“Yep.”

“Where you’re now living in your tiny house.”

Robin smiled and cocked her hip. “Don’t tell me you didn’t already know we got caught in the hailstorm together on Saturday, or that he made chicken and waffles at his house for dinner that night.”

Heather lifted her chin half an inch. “I did not know about the chicken and waffles.”

“Mm-hm. But you did know about my giant crush on Shane. The whole town probably knows and I’ve been here for two days.”

“I didn’t know that either. I knew you two had gotten stuck out in the cabin. That’s all.”

Robin cocked her head, trying to find the lie.

“I swear.” Heather laughed. “Though now that you’ve said it out loud, I’m sure it’ll be on the news tonight.” She glanced around like a reporter would jump out from the corner of the barn, a device recording everything they said.

“I’m an idiot, right?” Robin said as Heather led her back inside. “I mean, I don’t live here. Not really. And I’ve already broken the guy’s heart once.”

“Oh, I don’t think so,” Heather said.

“No? Which part?”

“The part about breaking his heart.” She gave Robin a half-smile as she turned into the office. “That Shane Royal is a tough nut to crack. I think you have a shot with him.”

“You really think so?”

“Are we going to talk about Shane all day?” Levi asked.

“All day?” Heather asked at the same time humiliation rolled through Robin. “I’ve been outside for three minutes.”

“Well, he just called, and he’s on his way over.” Levi nodded toward the phone like that would confirm it.

“Really?” Robin said in tandem with Heather. “Why’s he coming here?” Robin exchanged a look with Heather, who wore a smile the size of the Gulf of Mexico.

“I called and said you were giving a lesson,” she said. “All of our employees will be there too, and I wondered if he wanted to come.”

Half of Robin wanted to be furious—was furious with Heather. The other half wanted to spend time with Shane, even if it was in a group of other people.

“And you didn’t know about the chicken and waffles.” Robin scoffed. “Biggest lie I ever heard.”

“Even I heard about the chicken and waffles,” Levi muttered. “Which leads me to ask once again: Are we gonna talk about Shane Royal all day?”

“No,” Robin said in her best authoritative tone.

“Is this what you guys do?” Levi asked. “You and May, when you get together with Ally and the girls at Sotheby’s? You talk about us men, don’t you?”

“Of course not.” Heather tipped up onto her toes and swept a kiss across Levi’s mouth. “Believe it or not, we have other things to talk about.”

“What about before we got married?” Levi pressed.

“Oh, well, yeah.” Heather grinned and went around the desk. “Before we got married, when I went to Sotheby’s, I talked about you.”

“What did you say?”

Heather sighed and looked up at her husband. “Robin?” she prompted.

“Women tend to need a nudge in the right direction,” Robin said as Levi swung his attention toward her. “So May probably told Heather she was dumb if she left you, that you were a great guy, that kind of thing.”

“You are a great guy,” Heather said, picking up a pen and looking at the computer. “And Robin just needs a nudge with Shane. Nothing wrong with that.”

Robin wanted to say she’d already held the man’s hand, already told him she liked him, but she clamped her lips shut around the confession. He was the one who hadn’t come to her aid on Saturday. He hadn’t stopped by or texted all day Sunday either. So maybe Heather’s phone call was more of a nudge for him than for Robin.

Maybe men needed a little relationship help sometimes too. At least that was what Robin told herself until she saw the gloriously handsome cowboy walk through the door and head straight toward her.