True Love at Silver Creek Ranch (21 page)

Brooke stared at her mother in surprise, feeling the revelation wash over her.

Sandy continued, “Yes, part of the year the weather will inhibit you, but you'll manage.”

“Mom, Josh and I are the ranch foremen. I think it might take too much away from my job.”

“Josh has something he loves, sweetie. So does Nate. Do you begrudge them that?”

“No, of course not!”

“Why would they begrudge you? I think you can all work it out together. It wouldn't be full-time, after all. And maybe Adam wants to stay on. That would really help.”

“I don't know about that,” Brooke warned her. “When his grandma is better, he'll probably leave. I don't think he feels like he fits in here anymore.” She forced herself to act casually as she stood up to reach the recipe box.

“Do you think there's something troubling him?” Sandy asked.

Brooke hesitated even as she sat back down, looking into her mom's concerned face. “You should have seen how he reacted when people called him a hero the other night. He told me a few things about what happened to him in Afghanistan. It was . . . pretty terrible, and he blames himself when he shouldn't.”

“They say time heals—and they wouldn't say it so much if it wasn't true. He seems like a strong man who'll be able to figure things out. I don't think you need to worry.”

But I do worry,
Brooke thought bleakly, knowing she probably worried too much. She was getting more and more involved with Adam, and not just in bed.

“As for you,” Sandy continued, “give the idea of becoming an instructor some thought. It will be a challenge—but you're good at challenges.”

Brooke leaned over and kissed her cheek. “Thanks, Mom.”

They were elbow deep in flour, making chocolate-chip-cookie batter and sugar-cookie dough, when Josh came in.

“I'm calling a family meeting,” he said.

As Doug and Nate strolled in after him, Brooke asked sharply, “There wasn't a problem with Tyler, was there?”

“Nope, nothing to do with him,” Josh said. “Although if I say so myself, he took to my riding instruction well.”

Brooke rolled her eyes, then tapped Nate's hand as he tried to take a fingerful of dough. “Get a spoon! And Josh, I taught that kid everything he knows, and don't forget it.”

While Brooke and Sandy worked on the cookie dough, and Doug prepared a salad to start off dinner, Josh took a seat at the breakfast counter and gave them all a serious look.

Nate, who'd grabbed his ringing cell phone, sent it to voice mail. “What's up?”

“You know this Aspen boutique who wants to buy some of my work?” Josh began.

Everyone nodded, and Doug added, “That's impressive, son.”

Josh gave a half smile. “Thanks. Well, it's getting even bigger than that. Whitney, the owner of Leather and Lace, contacted me through Brooke, and she's interested, too—in my work.”

Nate chuckled.

“It's not like that,” Josh said, shaking his head. “I haven't met with her yet, and don't know if I'd do it—I'd have to feel comfortable, after all—but, this is just getting too big for me to make decisions on my own, a bigger time commitment than I ever thought I'd make to something that was always a hobby for me.”

“You're training Adam to prepare the leather, right?” Brooke asked, licking her finger. “That'll help.”

“Get a spoon!” Nate commanded.

She stuck out her tongue.

“But that's not the point.” Josh sighed. “We're a small ranch, and we all have to work. I don't want to make any of you work harder because I'm off doing something that will only benefit me.”

“Nobody ever said you had to devote every wakin' moment to this ranch,” Doug said as he dumped sliced carrots into the main salad bowl. “We've got Adam now—and if we have to hire someone else, I think we can, right, Nate?”

Nate nodded. “We've really diversified the last couple years. We're okay. I wouldn't ever want you to feel like you owed us, Josh. Just like you showed me I could pursue my favorite part of this job, you can do the same.”

Brooke scraped her dough into a plastic container and labeled it for the freezer. She was afraid to look up, afraid to show any disappointment. Now wasn't the time for her to bring up her own idea that would take her away from the ranch part-time. No way would she let her dad think they were all deserting their parents. Maybe she should just forget it.

Sandy cleared her throat and looked pointedly at Brooke, who shook her head quickly.

“What is it?” Doug asked.

Everyone was staring at her, and for once, words failed her. She gave her mom a pleading look, but Sandy just waited patiently for her to speak.

“Mom and I were just talking about an idea when Josh called this meeting. What a coincidence,” Brooke added with an awkward attempt at cheerfulness, looking at her hands as she washed them at the sink rather than at her family. Her nervousness showed her how much the idea of teaching kids and adults to ride already meant to her. “I've been enjoying working with Steph and Tyler, and thought maybe I could be a part-time riding instructor here at the ranch.”

For a moment, there was complete silence. Gritting her teeth, she made herself look at everyone, saw her mother's encouraging smile, Josh's grin, Nate's eyes wide with surprise—but she couldn't read her father's impassivity.

“We already give sleigh rides in the winter,” Josh said. “Riding instruction would be another way to generate some tourist money and help the town out, too. We don't have anything like that right in Valentine Valley.”

She'd known Josh would support her. She looked at Nate.

He shrugged. “I have nothing against it. If we're already talking about keeping Adam on, if he wants it, or hiring someone else, that should cover it. Dad?”

Doug sighed. “It's strange to know that if I'm callin' myself ‘almost retired,' I shouldn't have a say in this.”

“Of course you have a say, Dad,” Brooke said earnestly. “I would never do anything you didn't think would benefit the ranch.”

“If you three think you can make all these part-time jobs work, then it's fine by me.”

Sandy looked relieved, but Brooke wasn't. She didn't feel like her dad had actually approved, but he hadn't said no, either. Her excitement took a little hit, but she was determined to make it work.

“No point in worrying about this now,” she said briskly. “It's almost Christmas, and we have enough to do. We'll talk about it after the holidays.”

Chapter Nineteen

T
hat night, Adam cradled a naked Brooke in his arms, satisfied and sleepy and so comfortable in his bed. He could hear the crackling of the fire in the living room and the quietness of her breathing.

He still couldn't believe he'd shared the truth of his past with her but had been so surprised at how right it felt. The weight seemed off his chest, as if he could inhale deeply again. His dreams weren't full of death and dying, but occasionally the bittersweet memory of the good times he and his friends had shared.

He'd shared something he hadn't discussed with another soul—did that mean he was falling in love with Brooke? It was such a surprise to even think about, and he knew better than to mention it aloud. He wasn't even certain himself and knew she wasn't ready to hear it, regardless. He could be patient and wait until the moment was right.

“Is that Ranger snoring?” Brooke asked in the middle of a yawn.

“Guess I'm used to it. And I was just about to say how quiet you were tonight.” He gently threaded his fingers through her hair, sweeping it back from her face, so he could see her expression. “Is something wrong?”

“Not with you,” she murmured, then came up on her elbow and looked down at him with wicked intent in her slumberous gaze. “That was . . . incredible.”

He smiled. “You're trying to distract me.”

She leaned down to kiss him, and her hair slid along his shoulders and about his face, like a waterfall hiding their kiss from the outside world.

Heaving a sigh, she laid her head back on his shoulder. “I have a lot of crazy thoughts going on in my head.”

“About Tyler? He's taken up a lot of your valuable time.”

She grinned. “My valuable time? What about yours? I thought you'd do my work for me while I dealt with him.”

“You didn't order me to,” he pointed out.

“True. But I admit, I like watching you work with him. I think you're a good influence.”

He winced. “Unfair. Next you'll expect me to be a saint.”

She tweaked his navel. “Never.” The she sighed. “He's not totally enthusiastic. Maybe his buddies have been giving him a hard time. It can't be easy trying to change your life.”

“It's not, but then, you know that.”

She looked up at him with a frown. “Me? I don't know anything about that. I've always been this way, with ranching as my goal. I'm pretty boring.”

“Really?” He studied her. “I think people can have more than one goal, and maybe you're figuring that out.”

Her smile was slow in coming. “What are you, a mind reader?”

“I just know you.”

“Okay, maybe you're right.”

Adam listened as she told him about her enjoyment working with teenagers, and her mom's suggestion that she might like to become a part-time riding instructor.

“So what's the problem?” he asked. “Seems to me you've been handling your work duties and Tyler. How would teaching be any different?”

“Because Josh is going to expand his work, too,” Brooke explained. “I just don't know if we can all pull back like this.”

“So Nate and Josh get to do what they want, but not you?”

Her gaze on him softened, and when she caressed his cheek, he turned to kiss her fingers.

“My champion,” she murmured.

“I'm being serious,” he countered.

“I know you are. I guess I just have to . . . see how it goes. But I came up with a way to test myself where kids are concerned.”

“Should I even ask?”

She grinned. “I'd like to volunteer to host an outing for the Chess Club. I could get the greenhorns on a horse, maybe lead some of the more experienced ones on a trail ride up into the mountains. But I'd need help. You up for it?”

“Wow, give a woman great sex, and she expects a favor in return.”

“Excuse me, but I think
I
gave
you
great sex, so I'm asking a favor in return.”

“You're my boss. I think I have to do everything you say.”

Laughing, she leaned to kiss him, and the kisses turned passionate.

“Whoa!” she said at last, gasping. “We can't do this again. I have to sneak back to my own bed.”

He groaned and rolled away. “This sucks.”

“So . . . what would you think if I moved into the apartment over the bakery?”

He lifted his head and stared at her. “You're considering that?”

“Just considering because I have to also consider my mom's health. But I think it would be pretty good to fall asleep with you sometimes,” she added, wearing a sexy smile.

He sat up. “I think you'd be shocked at how male and gross I am in the morning in my skivvies.”

“I'll take my chances.”

T
uesday morning, Brooke texted her invitation to the Chess Club for a Friday afternoon riding instruction, a sleigh ride, followed by a bonfire. By Wednesday, Steph excitedly responded back that everyone was in.

Brooke was just telling Adam about it when Tyler's mom, Wendy, drove up to drop off her son. Instead of racing away when the teenager hopped out, she leaned toward the open door and peered out.

Her smile was tired but genuine. “Hey, Brooke, I can't thank you enough for asking Tyler to work here. He's having a good time and learning so much.”

“Glad to help, Wendy.” She glanced over her shoulder and saw that Tyler was already walking toward the barn. “How's Cody?”

That was a mistake. Wendy's gaze dropped, and she turned to grip the steering wheel. “I don't know. Sometimes I think he's learned a lesson, other times . . . that he's given up. I guess I can only wait.”

She drove away, and Brooke stood there wincing at her own stupidity. If she were in Wendy's place, she wouldn't want people ignoring the existence of her older son, who'd made a mistake, paid the price, and was starting over. But Wendy had
two
sons in trouble, even as she was struggling to support them without their dad's help.

With a sigh, Brooke turned around, wrapped her scarf tighter around her neck, and saw Adam and Tyler together, leaning on the corral fence looking at the horses, talking. She liked looking at them together, and it made her think of Adam as a dad. The sweet tenderness of it shocked her, and she knew she had to put it out of her mind, before she started angsting over him leaving town.

As Brooke moved closer, Adam glanced over his shoulder at her. “Tyler here has volunteered to be your assistant Friday night. I told him it would be okay to enjoy his time with his friends, but he disagrees.”

Tyler scowled. “Look, they all know I'm here for community service. I'm not hidin' anything. And they're not really my friends.” He stalked into the barn.

Brooke raised an eyebrow at Adam, who only said, “He's embarrassed. That's a good sign.”

“If you say so.”

Friday was a half day for school, and after lunch a caravan of cars and pickups started dropping off teenagers, a dozen in all. A couple of parents stayed to help chaperone and prepare hot dogs and s'mores for the bonfire later. A few unloaded their kids' horses from trailers.

As Steph was helping call in horses from the pasture, Brooke found her.

“Before you can say anything,” Steph began, “this kind of exploded. I thought maybe five kids would come, but they told their friends and . . . I hope you don't mind. I'll help teach, too.”

Brooke slung an arm around her shoulder and squeezed. “I don't mind at all. I prayed for good weather all week, and here we are, in the forties and sunny. The more the merrier!” Then she lowered her voice. “How's Tyler?”

Steph grimaced. “You see him more than I do. I can't because of my dad, you know. And Tyler doesn't talk to me much at school. I think he doesn't want to get me involved with the guys he used to hang out with.”

“Used to?”

“He's trying to stay away. They're still around, but he's grounded and can't go out at night. This is his first party since he got arrested. I was worried his mom wasn't going to let him come.”

“He volunteered to be my assistant today. Maybe it's easier for him to keep busy.”

“I hope so,” Steph murmured.

Another car drove up, and Emily emerged, waving happily.

Brooke eyed S3teph, who shrugged. “I asked if she wanted to chaperone.”

“That was nice of you.”

“Maybe not,” Steph said ruefully. “This is kind of a wild crowd.”

And it was, but Brooke had the best time. Between her, Adam, Steph, Tyler, and some of the more experienced kids in the crowd, they got everybody comfortable on horses. There were a few old mares and geldings who would follow the other horses with no guidance, and those were given to the greenhorns. The dogs raced around wildly while the chaperones smiled and called out pointers. Soon they were riding through the scenic beauty of her ranch, and Brooke felt so proud and humble at what her ancestors had created in this mountain valley. Water tumbled through ice down Silver Creek, glistening in the sun. Slow-moving herds of cattle lowed and raised their heads from behind fences as the battalion of riders went by. The riders were able to climb a bit into the foothills on a gently sloping path, and Valentine Valley spread out before them, the spires of the churches and town hall pointing into the blue sky.

Adam was surprised how much he enjoyed the afternoon with the kids. They were eager to learn, even if a few of them tended to talk when they were supposed to be listening. He felt . . . peaceful, bringing up the tail end of the line, Ranger trotting at his side.

After oating the horses and turning them loose in the pasture, the kids gathered to start on the bonfire. Adam drove the sleigh, taking groups of two or three kids out at a time, while the others roasted hot dogs and gulped hot chocolate. Tyler asked to ride alongside him to learn about driving the sleigh. Adam suspected it was to avoid some of the other kids, but he wouldn't force Tyler to participate.

Once they were gliding through the countryside, they couldn't quite hear the chattering of the three girls behind them, as the wind scattered their words. Instead, the bells chimed softly along the sleigh, and the snow and ice crunched and crackled beneath them.

Due to the secret that hung between them, Tyler's joyriding with the Thalberg ATV, the kid was usually defensive and close to crossing the line into insolence. Adam knew he himself had probably behaved the same way with Coach McKee at the beginning. It was hard to believe he ever resented Coach, for they got along great now. Adam had been lucky enough to work beside him several times at the Huang house.

“So what was it like being a soldier?” Tyler suddenly asked.

Adam raised an eyebrow at the kid.

“If you don't mind me askin',” he shot back, frowning.

“I don't mind.” And surprisingly, he didn't. “I hated it for a while in boot camp, but when I made it through that, I was proud of myself and the skills the Marines had taught me. I felt like a warrior, the first line of defense for my country. Marines are often the first called in when there's a problem.”

“I bet you were happy when you killed the bad guys.”

“A Marine celebrates surviving, not the killing,” Adam said quietly. “It's not like a video game—you know for every person lost, there's someone grieving.”

“But when they're trying to kill you—”

“You do what you have to. But you don't enjoy it.”

Tyler said nothing for a few minutes, watching Adam's hands on the reins. “Did you get hurt?” he finally asked.

“I did. But some of my friends died, so my injury is just a scar that reminds me to be glad I'm alive.”

And he
was
glad to be alive, he thought. Not just glad to have survived, but to be alive, to experience life—to be with Brooke.

“It doesn't sound like it's good to be a soldier,” the kid said dubiously.

“I'm honored to have served my country, Tyler, to have made a difference. There's always a risk, of course, but if a guy wants every day to be challenging, to experience incredible pride in what he's accomplished, then he becomes a Marine.” Now he sounded like a recruiting officer, but he didn't want to give the kid only one side about life in the military.

Tyler gave him a considering glance, then nodded and looked ahead to the mountains.

When they returned to the house, Adam couldn't help but notice how Tyler kept himself on the outside of this group of kids. Since he was doing his community service, the club chaperones had agreed to give him one more chance, but Adam well remembered how Tyler must be feeling—caught between two groups of kids, trying to leave the one behind but not feeling like he fit in with the new crowd, who didn't trust him.

Steph tried to include him whenever she could. She insisted he eat hot dogs sitting on a log beside her, not realizing that another young man glowered at the two as they laughed over something. Tyler might have competition for her attention.

As the teenagers were picked up one by one, and the sun was setting, Adam ended up sorting through tack with Tyler in the barn, the double doors behind them wide open.

“Did Steph leave?” Adam asked.

Tyler just gestured with his head behind them. Adam turned and saw Steph talking to the boy who'd been glowering at her earlier.

“Did you get a chance to say good-bye?” Adam asked.

“She's busy. It's not like we're together or anything.”

Adam caught the other boy giving Tyler a victorious look before he sauntered away to his own car. Adam hoped Tyler missed it.

The two of them straightened the tack room in silence for a while, then Adam considered that since Tyler had asked him personal questions, he could do the same.

“This might be none of my business,” Adam said, “but I was wondering how your brother's doing.”