Ashley pulled up outside the ranch on Wednesday morning. It had been a difficult few days. Her mom had either been crying, her eyes all swollen, or shouting. Her dad just sat in silence. She didn’t know how to make either of them feel better. It was always this way when the anniversary came close. She’d phoned the bank and set up a meeting with a financial adviser to call to the house.

She saw Adam in the distance, he seemed to be singing to the horses as he worked. There was something about him. He seemed honest and hardworking, kind and all sorts of other things you would never associate with someone involved in drugs.

What was she doing thinking about a drug smuggler? Could she have picked a worse guy if she had tried? But he seemed so different from the usual guys here. He hadn’t told her who he was despite admitting he’d sung to Greybird. He must have thought she was being unkind when she said he didn’t look like a singer. From what the guys had said, Adam’s band wasn’t half bad. Why would he hide his talent or connections? Most of the guests here were the first to tell people they were somebody, even if that meant they were related to the clownfish they’d modeled Nemo after. If she didn’t know better, she would think he was innocent. But he’d admitted to it at dinner. What had he said? Oh yeah “a little bit of coke.” How could he be so dismissive of something responsible for ruining people’s lives?

Her parents would be horrified. Not that it was unusual for her mom to react that way, but her dad—he would be gutted. It wasn’t worth it. No guy, no matter how cool he seemed, was worth hurting her parents over. They had been through enough.

“Hey, Ashley, what’s with the long face? The sun’s shining and the horses need exercising. You’re usually the first one out the door. Anything I can do?”

“No thank you, Loretta. Nothing wrong with me. Just thinking.”

“Of Kayleigh? It’s her anniversary soon, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, next month. It’s kind of you to remember.”

“Bit hard to forget. Such a tragedy. She was a lovely girl, your sister. Kind, beautiful and so strong-minded. Nobody was going to tell her how to live her life. It was her way or the highway. I liked her spunk, but I didn’t envy your parents.”

“Never heard her described that way before. You know when someone dies, they become a saint and all that.” That was how her mom remembered Kayleigh.

“I guess that is some people’s way of coping. Only the good die young and all that. Don’t get me wrong, Ashley. I loved your sister, but she wasn’t like you. She didn’t have your heart or your loyalty. You know, those very things that are making you throw your life away here. You should head to LA or farther afield. Find something you love and do it. Just for you. Not for your parents or Kayleigh, but for Ashley.”

Ashley didn’t know how to react.

“Sorry, I shouldn’t have said all that. Sometimes my tongue runs away with me.”

“You’re looking out for me. It’s cool. Maybe someday I will travel a bit, but I’ll always come home. All I ever wanted was to run the ranch and hang with the kids. I wish I could take over my parents’ place and make it suitable for the children. Have a sensory room to calm them down when things are getting too much for them. And a pool. So many of them love the water. They can get around better than on dry ground. But I might as well wish for the moon. Right?”

“You could marry someone rich? One of the guests maybe. It’s not like you haven’t caught their eye. If I had a dollar for every guest who wanted to go on a date with you, I would be a wealthy woman.”

“Loretta. I couldn’t do that. Date a drug addict or, worse, a smuggler. With my history? That would destroy my parents, never mind insult Kayleigh’s memory.”

“Everyone deserves a second chance, don’t they? Particularly if they are kind and helpful and it seems like they just screwed up that one time. Someone like Adam for instance. He seems like a genuine guy. Not like the usual goofballs we get coming around here.”

“Adam Malone and me? No way. Why would you even put us together? We aren’t in the least bit alike.”

“I don’t know about that. You are both kind, generous of spirit, hard working. I know the reasons why he is here, but it just doesn’t fit for him to be a drug smuggler. He’s not the type.”

“Type? Sure he is. He’s rich and thinks he’s above the law. Just like the rest of them.”

“You don’t believe that any more than I do. Whatever else Adam is, he isn’t a bit like Tyler or the usual contenders. He’s different. There was a rumor it was his girlfriend who smuggled the drugs. Maybe he thought he was being a gentleman taking the blame. Maybe he loved her so much, he couldn’t bear to see her in trouble.”

Adam loved someone. She didn’t like the sound of that. “If that’s the case, he’s stupid on top of being a drug smuggler. Either way, he’s not a good match.”

Loretta stayed silent but she had a smug look on her face.

“What?”

“I think the lady doth protest too much.” Loretta took out a dishcloth and began rubbing the sparkling table. “Face it, Ashley. You like him. A lot. You light up when he comes near you. The same for him. The two of you could have something special.”

“Oh, Loretta. You’ve been watching too much Days of our Lives again. It’s only on TV that millionaires fall for dirt-poor ranch girls.”

“He isn’t a millionaire.”

“You know what I mean.”

“Try billionaire. Seems he had some help from a friend who invested his money in a combination of property and new IT companies. Wish I had a friend like that. Maybe I wouldn’t be sitting here dishing up meals to this group.”

“They aren’t so bad. Not now that Tyler has left.”

“Now I know I am right. You, Miss Ashley Baker, have it bad. You’ve fallen for Mr. Malone whether you like it or not.”

Loretta turned away, whistling the tune of Days of Our Lives. Ashley opened her mouth, but the words stuck in her throat.