Colorado Cabin in the Pines (Peakview series Book 3) (11 page)

Luke sucked his breath in deeply as her head settled in his lap, fighting the reaction of his lower body parts to that simple motion. He was treading on unsteady water here and was about to sink. In a few weeks she’d walk out of his life again. He didn’t want to be left broken-hearted, but it might be too late. Might have been the moment he saw her ride up to his cabin last month. His heart belonged to her—always had. For now, he’d just enjoy their time. He’d be sad later.

The ride back to the camp was much more subdued than the ride to the show. Most of the kids, worn out from the long day, fought to keep their eyes open. Marissa settled in Penny’s lap, and Luke could tell by the way she held on tight to the child that she was thinking about having to say goodbye in a few short minutes. He left them alone and joined with a few of the counselors singing camp songs until they pulled up in front of the bunkhouses.

“It was nice meeting you Marissa. Be a good little cowgirl, and maybe we’ll see you back here next summer.” He gave the child a hug and walked over to help Ryan unload the wagon. He would wait to make sure Penny got home safely. He knew she needed some time to say goodbye to Marissa and the other campers.

“You want me to drive you and Penny home? You can come back and get your horses tomorrow,” Ryan offered as they finished putting things away.

“Thanks, but the ride home will be good. Penny needs some time to process saying goodbye to her first set of campers. Besides it’s a beautiful night, and the dogs could use the exercise after being closed up in the lodge while we were at the fireworks. The full moon will light our way.” Luke looked at the moon and stars, loving the beauty of the mountains away from city lights.

He glanced over. Penny and Marissa held on to one another, tears streaming down both of their faces. Penny wiped hers away as the child clung to her legs, plastering a weak smile on her face. He heard her say, “It’s okay. We’ll always be friends, I promise. We’ll write each other letters, and I’m going to stop down and see you in Denver before I head back to Chicago.” She gently eased out the child’s grip and encouraged her to head to the bunkhouse. “I won’t forget you.”

“I won’t forget you either,” the child squeaked as she let go and joined the others. “You’ll always be my best friend.”

Penny turned to him, tears welling up in her eyes once more. “Let’s go.” She called Bandit and climbed on Ginger and followed him out of the gate, not looking back. Luke wanted to console her—try and make things better, but he sensed that she needed some space, so he led the way down the narrow path by the river, shining his flashlight ahead to light their way in silence. A full moon had risen, and the tree tops glistened in the pale light. He remained quiet until they cleared the trees at the edge of the Anderson land, where he pulled back on Geronimo to let her ride up alongside him.

“You okay?” he reached out and entwined her fingers with his.

“Yeah, I’m fine. That was a hard one. I guess I’ll need to get used to goodbyes once I start teaching. It would be easier if I knew she was going back to a loving place, but…”

He squeezed her fingers and held on until they stopped in front of her barn. Dismounting, she unsaddled Ginger and let her loose in the corral. “Thanks for riding home with me.” She turned and faced where he stood trying unsuccessfully to calm down his puppy. “You better get Brutus home, before he takes off by himself.”

He wanted to kiss her pain away—hold her and never let go. Instead he brushed a light kiss across her forehead and headed Geronimo down the lane.

***

Penny walked across the lawn to the house, letting tears flow freely down her face. She’d held her emotions inside for too long today. She sighed in relief to see that all the lights were out inside the residence. No doubt her parents had already retired from a long day. She wasn’t in the mood to talk to anyone right now. She made her way up the back staircase with Bandit at her heels. The tears continued to flow as she undressed and slipped on the oversized T-shirt that served as her pajamas. It was one of Luke’s old shirts that she had snagged in high school, she liked falling asleep surrounded by his scent. Even though it had been washed at least a hundred times since then, she still swore it smelled like him. Bandit jumped up on the bed beside her and whined attempting to lick away her person’s tears.

“I’m okay.” Penny said softly trying to reassure her companion. She pulled the dog into a tight embrace. What were her tears all about? It had been sad to say goodbye to Marissa, but it was more than that. Luke Walker. What was she going to do about Luke? He acted so sweet all day long, not only to her but to Marissa as well. What did he think was happening between them? Did he want her to give up her career to move home to the Walker Ranch? For that matter, what did she want? She was so confused. Maybe it was a mistake to come back here.

She loved Luke. There she’d said it. She did love him, but she needed more. She’d never be happy just being a rancher’s wife. She needed to make a difference in the world, help others, have her own career. How could she do that in Peakview County? She had no answers—only questions.

The next weeks passed. A new group of campers came and went, as adorable as the first group, but none that she got as attached to as Marissa. Maybe she was learning to be compassionate, yet separate her job from her personal feelings. A skill she’d no doubt need as a school teacher. She hadn’t heard from Marissa since the child left camp. As more and more days went by, her worry over her small friend threatened to get the best of her. At her request, Willow contacted the child’s social worker and got permission to give Penny the telephone number of the child’s foster mother.

Following a restless weekend, she made the call on Monday morning. “Mrs. Grant? My name is Penny Anderson. I was one of Marissa’s camp counselors at Peak Adventure Camp. I’m going to be in Denver later this week and was wondering if I could stop by and take Marissa to lunch?”

“Her caseworker told me you might be calling. I suppose it would be okay, as long as you clear it with me ahead of time. I can’t plan my schedule around you. It is always good to get one of them out of my hair for a while. Summers are brutal with eight kids in the house.”

Get her out of her hair? Penny felt her temperature rising to a boiling point. She let out a deep breath and counted to five before answering. It wouldn’t help Marissa if she lost her temper with this woman. Then she might never get to see the child. She pulled out her sweetest voice. “How about this Wednesday? I could be there about 11:00 and can keep her all afternoon if you like.

“I guess that would work.”

“Do you think I could talk to her for a minute, let her know I’m coming?”

“She’s outside somewhere. I’ll let her know. Goodbye.”

Penny leaned back in her chair. Eight kids? Was Marissa getting any love in this home? She wiped away the stray tear that trickled down her cheek. She needed to show the child that she was important, special, even if only for one afternoon.

The morning was filled with the chaos of a whole new group of youngsters. She admired Willow and Ryan more and more each day. How did they do this? And live there, too? At least she got away to the peace and quiet of her parents’ home every evening.

She hadn’t seen Luke since the Fourth. It was probably best to keep her distance until she left Colorado. She didn’t need to start depending on him again—it would just make it that much harder to say goodbye. Still, she missed his warm blue eyes and irresistible smile. And the way he had been with Marissa…he would make an excellent father someday.

***

Luke rode down to the main house with Brutus bounding ahead. The puppy had already learned that Grandma was an easy target for lots of dog treats. It had been a long, dusty day of working with cantankerous horses. July was the hottest month in Peakview County. The brilliant sun shining down through the crystal blue sky could zap all of your energy by the end of the day. Even the horses seemed to feel it. Usually, he just crashed at his cabin, content with the company of Brutus, who seemed to gain a couple of pounds each day. If this kept up, he’d be as big as one of their foals soon. But tonight, he needed some human company. He hadn’t seen Penny in a couple of weeks, and missed her laugh in spite of himself.

As he walked up the wide porch step, June called out to him from the old wooden swing. “Hey Luke. Good to see you. Sit down and I’ll grab you some iced tea.”

“You don’t need to get up, I can get my own,” he replied.

His stepmom was already on her feet. “No, you relax. You’ve had a long day. I’ll be right back.”

“Where’s the old man?”

“In the den working on the books. I’d recommend steering clear. You know how much he likes the numbers part of the business.”

“Good advice.” Luke plopped down on one of the padded lawn chairs and watched in amusement as Brutus unsuccessfully tried to get one of his parents’ dogs, Shep or Laddie, to chase him. The older dogs seemed content to lie in the yard and soak in the last rays of sunshine for the day. When June reemerged, however, Brutus gave up and sat politely at her feet salivating at the thought of what she surely must have in her pocket.

Luke laughed. “You’re spoiling my dog, already.”

“That’s what puppies are for. Right Brutus?” June produced a bone from her pocket and leaned down to receive a slobbery kiss before turning over the treat. “How’s everything going? Is Penny still around? You two looked like you were having a good time together on the Fourth.”

“I haven’t seen her since. I think she’s here for a couple more weeks.” He gazed off toward the Anderson place.

“It’s really none of my business, but you still have feelings for her, don’t you?”

Luke knew that his stepmom was very perceptive. Probably woman’s intuition. “It doesn’t matter if I do, she’s leaving and that’s that. I can’t make her stay somewhere she doesn’t want to be.”

“Are you one hundred percent sure that she doesn’t want to be here with you? Have you asked her?”

Luke looked into June’s kind eyes, fighting back unmanly tears that threatened to escape like wild horses from his eyes. “I can’t ask her to give up her dreams. I love her too much for that.” There he’d said it, he loved her—always had—always would.

“Well, take it from someone who’s had a little bit of experience in finding love, if it’s true love, it’s more important than any job or location. I took a huge chance coming back here from Ohio to be with your dad, and look how well that turned out.” June’s face still lit up every time she mentioned his dad. He wanted that feeling. “If you truly love her, then tell her. Let her make the choice. Don’t leave words unspoken that you’ll regret.”

“Thanks, Mom. I’ll think about it.” Luke downed the rest of his tea and stood up and gave her a hug. “Come on, Brutus. Let’s get home. Tomorrow starts early.” Luke trudged back up the hill to his dream home. The home he shared with no one.

***

Penny turned off Peaktop Highway and headed down 1-70 toward Denver. Usually she enjoyed singing along with her favorite country radio station as she drove, but today she was too distracted to listen. Even though Marissa’s foster mom had agreed to let her pick up the child and spend the day with her, she had no idea what she would find when she got there. It had been almost three weeks since her young friend had left camp, and she hadn’t heard from her once. She feared the worst but hoped for the best. Another two weeks and Penny would be on her way back to Chicago—too far away to watch out for her. She wouldn’t be around for Marissa, and she doubted that anyone else would be there either. She wanted to trust the system to take care of the child, but she knew that didn’t always happen.

When she got into Denver, she followed her phone’s directions and turned off the Interstate and headed down East Colfax Ave. The houses got smaller the farther she drove, and her nerves kicked in as she turned into a shabby neighborhood. She maneuvered through several turns down small narrow streets, driving slowly to avoid children playing outside without any adult supervision. Her phone indicated she’d arrived at her destination, and she stopped in front of a small, one-story home that looked as though it had not been painted in this century. Two teenage boys lounged on the front porch smoking cigarettes—at least she hoped they were cigarettes.

“Excuse me. Is this the Grant’s?”

One of the young men looked up at her with a frown. “Who wants to know?”

“I’m Penny Anderson. I’m here to see Marissa.”

“Mom,” he yelled without getting up. “There’s someone here to see one of the little brats.”

A worn-looking woman appeared at the screen door, she held a cigarette in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other. “Come on in, I’ll get her.”

Penny stepped inside and looked around the small, dark living room. Although the furniture was shabby, the room generally appeared to be clean. Three children sat together on the only couch watching cartoons.