Early Thursday morning, Wes offered to go downstairs and buy some pastries while Roxanne scrambled eggs and cooked bacon. She got a kick out of his delight with her apartment’s location right above a bakery. He had more of a sweet tooth than she did.

Bacon sizzled in the skillet while she cracked eggs into a bowl. She’d just picked up the whisk when the opening bars of Born Country filled the small kitchen. She hit the speaker button on her phone. “Hi, Dad!”

“Hi, sweetheart! Sounds like I caught you cooking breakfast.”

“Sure did, but that’s okay.” She picked up the bowl and began whisking the eggs. “I can cook and talk.”

“Your mother was good at that, too. Just thought I’d find out how much fun you and Wes are having without me.”

“Way too much fun. Yesterday I showed him all around this cute little town. He’s especially crazy about the bakery and thinks it’s very cool I live right over it.”

“They sure make good cherry pie. Pete and I had that thing gone in no time. So what’s happening today?”

“This morning we’re going riding.” She dumped the eggs in a frying pan.

“Oh, yeah? Where?”

“Wild Creek Ranch.”

“Isn’t that the stable Kendra McGavin owns?”

“It is.” She stirred the eggs and then turned the bacon.

“Tell her I said hello.”

“I will.” She decided to mention that Michael was going along. It was unfair to expect Wes to keep quiet about it after he got home. “Do you remember meeting Michael Murphy, co-owner of the Guzzling Grizzly?” She kept track of the eggs and bacon, which was a trick now that she was discussing Michael.

“Tall guy? Built like a linebacker?”

“That’s the one.” Handsome. Talented. Kind.

“What about him?”

“He’s going riding with Wes and me this morning.”

“Sounds like fun.”

“I’m sure it will be.” She was tempted to leave it at that. But she’d omitted the significant information. Her dad deserved to know that she was involved with someone. “I’ve sort of been dating him.”

“Really? That’s great! He seems like a decent guy.”

“He is. A very decent guy.” She turned off the heat under both the eggs and the bacon.

“Anyway, if he’s not, I’ll hear about it from Wes.”

“Um, yes, I suppose you will.”

“Have they met each other yet?”

“Briefly. We went to the Guzzling Grizzly for drinks Tuesday night.”

“How’d that go?”

“Fine.”

“Must have if you’re all going riding today.”

“It was Wes’s idea, actually.” She took the pans off the stove and covered them.

“I take it your guy—what’s his name again?”

“Michael.”

“I take it Michael rides.”

“Some. He grew up in a suburb of Chicago. He came West about a year ago.”

Her dad chuckled. “A tenderfoot, huh? You and Wes go easy on him, okay?”

“We will.” At least she would. She couldn’t make promises regarding her brother.

“I have a hunch Wes wants to test the guy’s mettle.”

“Probably.” Most definitely.

“Your brother may never wholeheartedly approve of anyone you take up with. You know that, right?”

She sighed. “I do know that.”

“But if he likes Michael even a little, you’ve found yourself a gem.”

“Thanks, Dad. I’ll keep you posted.”

“Please do. And don’t forget to say hello to Kendra for me.”

“I won’t.” She glanced up as Wes returned with a box full of sweet-smelling goodies. “I just talked to Dad.”

“Yeah? Everything okay?”

“Everything’s fine. I think he wishes he could be here with us.”

“I wish he could, too. I miss the old days, when everyone was together.”

“Me, too. I loved that. But the way things have grown up around the ranch—”

“It’s not the same. I get that. I think Dad and Pete are starting to feel it, too, but…” He shrugged.

“Right. Not our decision.” She gestured toward the pans on the stove. “Let’s eat.”

“Smells terrific. You’ll be so excited when you see what I brought from downstairs.”

He did make her smile. She’d never met a guy who got as worked up about bakery items as Wes.

After dishing food for themselves and pouring their coffee, they sat at her kitchen table with the bakery box between them.

He opened it with a flourish. “Ta-da!”

“Cool! Is that chocolate croissant for you or me?”

“You. Ingrid said it was your new favorite.”

“Aw. Thank you.”

“I got a cheese Danish for each of us because I remembered you like those and a bear claw for me. I couldn’t decide between the bear claw and an éclair and then I remembered I could buy an éclair tomorrow morning.”

“Yes, you can.”

“Living over a bakery appeals to me.”

She laughed. “I can see that.” Watching him enjoy the pastries livened up breakfast considerably. She held off relating the rest of her conversation with their dad until halfway through the meal. “I told Dad about our ride today, and that we were going with Michael.”

He paused with his fork poised over what was left of his scrambled eggs. “And what did you say?”

“That I was dating him.”

“What was his response?”

“That he figured you’d inform him if Michael didn’t meet with your approval.”

“Yeah, I suppose I would. Not gonna lie to Dad.” He gazed at her. “Michael’s a dynamo. I can see why he’s successful and will continue to be successful. He sees an opportunity and grabs it.”

“That’s Michael.”

“Which is why he grabbed you.” His tone was gentle. “I’m so afraid you’re the shiny new toy.”

Her stomach hollowed out. “I’m afraid of that, too. Shiny new toys get discarded eventually, don’t they?”

“Not necessarily.” He heaved a sigh. “But he’s impulsive. He promoted Tansy on the spur of the moment Tuesday night.”

“Yeah, he did.”

“Which didn’t affect you in any way, but if he’s used to charging into a situation without thoroughly considering the repercussions…”

“I know. That’s not me.”

“It isn’t, but at least he’s not like Phil, who had no redeeming qualities whatsoever.”

“Hey! Yes, he did. He wanted it to last. It just didn’t.”

Wes grimaced. “Phil was an asshole who only cared about himself. Otherwise he would have ended things like a man instead of sneaking off in the dead of night.”

“He was distraught.”

“He was selfish.”

“I don’t want to think that.”

“I know you don’t. But surely you can tell the difference between Phil and Michael.”

“I guess so. For one thing, Phil never showed any interest in my work, my projects. Michael does. He’s excited for me.”

“He sincerely cares for you. That’s obvious. But it worries me that this came on so fast.”

“It worries me, too. Mistakes are made by rushing things. That’s why I’m not stupid enough to fantasize a future with him.”

Wes was silent for a moment. “I’d love to disagree with you on that because I can see how much you like him. But I think you’re right.”

Her throat ached. “What should I do?”

“I can’t tell you that, sis.”

“I know you can’t. I just—”

“You’re smart, sis. You’ll figure this out.” He used his fork to point to the eggs. “And by the way, these are primo. Thanks for making breakfast.”

“You’re so welcome.” She was grateful for a change in topic. “Thanks for buying the goodies.”

He smiled. “In case you failed to notice, I had fun doing it. I can see why you like living here.”

“I love this crazy little town. It’s a supportive atmosphere, a good base of operations for my design business.”

“That’s good news. I know you researched the heck out of this place.” He winked at her. “Looks like you chose wisely.”

It was an old joke with them. They used to have Indiana Jones marathons and choose wisely had become a catch phrase. “I did, and I’m not letting this thing between Michael and me, whatever it is, mess with that.”

* * *

Michael arrived at the ranch early, hoping to beat Roxanne and Wes there. Talking with Kendra always steadied him and she’d be down at the barn getting things ready. She’d understand that this ride was loaded with subtext.

Sure enough, she’d brought all three horses out and was grooming Jake, the Tennessee Walker he was used to.

He parked his truck and headed toward the barn. “I’ll take over.”

“Hey, Michael.” She handed him the brush. “I’ll start in on Winston, then.”

He swept the brush over the gelding’s deep mahogany coat. “I still think we should give Jake to Wes or Roxanne. His gait’s amazing.”

“We’re not doing that. I’m the one in charge of assigning mounts and I want you on Jake. You’re used to him and he’s the tallest horse of the three. You look damned good up there.”

He laughed. “Thanks.”

“My evil twin self was dying to put Wes on Eeyore, but I told her that would be unnecessarily mean.”

“Yeah, it would. Besides, Wes would know exactly what you were up to if you assigned him Eeyore.”

“He’s a wonderful horse. He looks old and decrepit, but he can move when he wants to.”

“I’m glad you listened to your better self and gave him Winston.”

“Most riders love Winston’s showy coat.” She patted the Paint’s caramel and white rump. “Right, boy?”

The horse whinnied a reply. That horse loved to carry on a conversation. Michael wouldn’t have minded taking Winston, or Strawberry, the roan Kendra had chosen for Roxanne. He was fond of them all.

But Kendra was the boss of this outfit. If she thought he’d cut a better figure on Jake, who was he to argue? She was clearly on his side, and that cheered him. The image of Wes on Eeyore, a floppy-eared, sway-backed grey horse with attitude, made him chuckle.

He finished brushing Jake and went over to the grooming tote to fetch a rag to wipe the dust away. He glanced in Kendra’s direction. “I hope you know that even on Jake, I won’t look like a seasoned cowboy.”

She paused to gaze at him. “Just don’t try to get fancy and you’ll be fine. I’d come with you, except I don’t like how that would appear, either. As if you needed your teacher or you might fall off.”

“You’ve put a lot of thought into this, haven’t you?”

“Yeah, like you haven’t.”

“I’m not worried about the riding part. I’m not in his league and I know it. But he has a lot of influence over Roxanne. His opinion will color how she feels about me.”

“It might. All you can do is be yourself and hope for the best.”

Thanks. I’ll remember that.”